- Brussels Airlines Appoints ITA Integration Chief Lorenza Maggio as New CEO
The Executive Board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG has appointed Lorenza Maggio as the new Chief Executive Officer of Brussels Airlines, in a leadership change that will place an experienced Lufthansa Group executive at the helm of the Belgian carrier.
The appointment, announced in Brussels on July 16, 2026, remains subject to approval by the Board of Directors of SN Airholding, the parent company of Brussels Airlines.
Ms Maggio will succeed Dorothea von Boxberg, who is leaving the company at her own request with effect from August 31, 2026. The date for Ms Maggio’s transition from Rome to Brussels is expected to be determined shortly.
Alongside her role as CEO of Brussels Airlines, Ms Maggio will also assume the position of Executive Board Representative to the European Commission, giving her an additional strategic role at a time when European aviation faces regulatory, sustainability and competitiveness pressures.
The appointment signals Lufthansa Group’s preference for continuity and internal leadership as it strengthens the role of Brussels Airlines within its wider European network. Ms Maggio brings experience across strategy, integration, sales, customer positioning and airline operations within the Lufthansa Group.
Dieter Vranckx, Chairman of the Board of Directors of SN Airholding and Chief Commercial Officer of the Lufthansa Group, described Ms Maggio as a highly accomplished and internationally experienced airline executive.
“Lorenza Maggio is a highly accomplished and internationally experienced airline executive. She knows the industry and our group from various leadership positions at different companies,” Mr Vranckx said.
“With her proven expertise, she will lead Brussels Airlines as an integrated hub airline within the Lufthansa Group. I am particularly pleased that we were able to appoint a successor from within our own ranks, following Dorothea von Boxberg, whom I wish to thank sincerely for her many years of successful service to the Lufthansa Group.”
Ms Maggio, 48, is an Italian national and has been a member of the Board of Directors of ITA Airways since January 2025. In her current role as Chief Strategy and Integration Officer, she is responsible for the integration of ITA Airways into the Lufthansa Group as well as shaping the airline’s strategic development.
That experience is likely to be relevant to her new role in Brussels, where she will be expected to lead an airline that operates as part of a broader Lufthansa Group network while retaining its Belgian identity and hub relevance.
Before joining the ITA Airways board, Ms Maggio served as Vice President Sales, overseeing sales for Lufthansa Group’s network airlines in Europe, excluding home markets, as well as the Middle East and Africa. She also previously held responsibility for brand and customer strategy at Eurowings and served as Managing Director of a subsidiary of the LSG Group.
Her career profile suggests a leadership style shaped by commercial strategy, integration management and customer-focused transformation — areas likely to remain central to Brussels Airlines’ next phase.
Brussels Airlines plays an important role within the Lufthansa Group, particularly through its Brussels hub and its connectivity between Europe and Africa. The carrier’s strategic value lies not only in its European network but also in its long-standing African routes, which remain a distinctive part of its market positioning.
Ms Maggio’s appointment comes at a time when European airlines are navigating rising operating costs, sustainability requirements, fleet investment demands, labour pressures and intensifying competition across short-haul and long-haul markets.
For Brussels Airlines, the leadership transition will be watched closely by staff, regulators, passengers and industry partners, particularly as the airline continues to balance group integration with local market relevance.
Her additional responsibility as Executive Board Representative to the European Commission also gives the appointment wider institutional significance. Brussels remains a key centre for aviation policy, competition regulation, environmental legislation and consumer protection rules in Europe. Having the Brussels Airlines CEO also serve in a representative role to the European Commission could strengthen Lufthansa Group’s engagement with EU-level policy discussions.
The outgoing CEO, Dorothea von Boxberg, is credited by Lufthansa Group leadership with years of successful service. Her departure at her own request creates a leadership opening at a time when Brussels Airlines is expected to remain central to Lufthansa’s multi-hub strategy.
The choice of Ms Maggio indicates that Lufthansa wants a leader who understands both airline operations and group-level integration, especially as the company continues to align multiple carriers within its portfolio.
Subject to the approval of SN Airholding’s Board of Directors, Ms Maggio will move from Rome to Brussels to take up one of the more strategically visible airline leadership roles in the Lufthansa Group.
Her immediate challenge will be to maintain operational stability, strengthen Brussels Airlines’ hub role, support profitability and position the carrier for growth in a changing European aviation market.
