Dusseldorf airport mourns its leader
Christoph Blume, chairman of the management board of Dusseldorf airport (Germany), has died unexpectedly at the age of 61. From 1997 to 2001 Blume was municipal director of Dusseldorf, the capital of the federal German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, before transferring to the airport operator Flughafen Düsseldorf GmbH as its CEO in 2001. In 2006 he was appointed chairman of the management board. During Blume’s term of office, Dusseldorf airport developed into a hub, a long-haul network was established, a new administration building was constructed and airport city evolved into an office location. On top of this, Blume was voluntary president of the airport association ADV in 2011 and 2012, and then its deputy president of the board until his untimely death.