Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus new Secretary General of Association of European Airlines (AEA)

On 1 September Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus will be leaving the Lufthansa Group to take up his new position as Secretary General of the Association of European Airlines (AEA) in Brussels.

The AEA represents the interests of 28 European airlines at European institutions in Brussels. At this key interface between business and politics Schulte-Strathaus will be in an excellent position to bring to bear his longstanding experience at Lufthansa and to represent airline interests more strongly outside the industry. Schulte-Strathaus will succeed the present Secretary General, Karl-Heinz Neumeister.

Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus has held the post of Vice President Corporate International Relations and Government Affairs at Lufthansa since 1992. He has thus been responsible for Lufthansa's corporate transport policy, which involves safeguarding the Group's interests in negotiations on traffic rights issues as well as advising and representing the Lufthansa Executive Board on general policy matters. These include Lufthansa's policy on alliances, the company's interests in associations and its stance on EU issues.

After obtaining a law degree from Freiburg University, Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus joined Lufthansa in Cologne in 1981. In 1983 he was appointed liaison commissioner to the Executive Board to promote political contacts in Bonn and Brussels. From 1988-1992 he assumed responsibility for industrial relations, and focussed on realigning Lufthansa's policy towards international organisations such as the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The new head of Lufthansa's corporate transport policy will be Thomas Kropp. As Vice President European Affairs, Kropp has represented Lufthansa's interests at EU institutions in Brussels since 1995.