In line with the announcement made in March of this year, Dr. Stefan Schulte, 49, took up his post as the new Executive Board Chairman (CEO) of Fraport AG yesterday, succeeding Dr. Wilhelm Bender who

had held the chairmanship for many years.?Peter Schmitz, 58, formerly Fraport's Senior Executive Vice President for ground services also became a new member of the executive board.

This change of leadership at Fraport also involves a redistribution of responsibilities among the executive board members.

Karlheinz Weimar, the Supervisory Board Chairman of Fraport and Hesse Minister of Finance, emphasized that the supervisory board is confident the new team is capable of steering the Fraport ship safely and successfully through bumpy waters during these times of great economic and financial crisis, to ensure Frankfurt Airport's future viability and competitiveness by expanding the airport quickly, and to provide positive prospects for the economy of the region and the entire State of Hesse.?

With Schulte, the supervisory board opted for an executive manager who is ‘thoroughly prepared for his new task, with great expertise, leadership skill, alertness and diligence’.?The company said that in both his positions as Fraport's Executive Board Vice Chairman responsible for airport expansion and before that as CFO, Schulte has gained an impressive profile qualifying him as? the successor of Bender. Thus his appointment was a ‘logical step’, said Weimar.

Fraport's new Ceo Schulte says he has primarily identified three key tasks:?mobilizing all forces to weather the current economic and financial crisis; pushing ahead with the expansion of Frankfurt? Airport (FRA) with resolve to ensure inauguration of the new runway for the 2011 winter timetable; and further enhancing customer satisfaction at FRA.