Turkey’s SunExpress to axe German airline operation

German-Turkish leisure carrier SunExpress is shutting its German division as part of a revamp of its operations which includes concentrating on its core business. Although SunExpress has gradually resumed flights since 1 June, restoring both domestic and international services, it says the coronavirus crisis “hit hard” during April and May. Shareholders of the company – jointly owned by Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines – have opted to cease operations with the SunExpress Germany arm, and carry out an “orderly liquidation” of the carrier, which originally started services in mid-2011. The decision has been made just two months into the tenure of new chief executive Max Kownatzki, who took over from Jens Bischof in April.<br/>