After its takeover by the Turkish company Pegasus Airlines, Smartwings replaced its board of directors and supervisory board with a three-member administrative board chaired by Salvatore Sciacchitano.
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Smartwings changed its governance system after being taken over by the Turkish airline Pegasus Airlines. According to data in the commercial register, a three-member administrative board replaced the previous board of directors and supervisory board. The server Zdopravy.cz drew attention to the changes.[1][2]
Composition of the administrative board
The chairman is Salvatore Sciacchitano, who headed the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) from 2020 to 2025. He previously worked at the Italian civil aviation authority ENAC, represented Italy on the management board of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and for eight years was executive secretary of the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC). The vice-chairman is Mehmet Tevfik Nane, a former chief executive and, since 2023, chairman of the board of Pegasus Airlines. The third member is Pegasus chief executive Güliz Öztürk. Two members of the administrative board act jointly on behalf of the company.[1][2]
Company management
The Turkish company completed the takeover of ČSA and the Smartwings group in early October 2026; the price was roughly 3.8 billion koruna. Smartwings then announced on LinkedIn that the chief executive is Emre Pekesen, who replaced Roman Vik, and the chief financial officer is Nur Karabacak, who succeeded Jiří Jurán. Both new managers had previously worked at Pegasus Airlines.[1][2]
Smartwings, formerly Travel Service, has been on the market for 28 years and is the largest Czech airline. It operates routes to 80 destinations in 20 countries. The combined groups have more than 175 aircraft and confirmed orders for another 140. Pegasus announced the signing of the takeover agreement in December 2025.[1][2]
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Chronology
- — The airline Smartwings has changed its management system, and its board is chaired by a former head of ICAO. ČTK / České noviny Echo24
Sources
- ČTK / České noviny — 12 October 2026
- Echo24 — 12 October 2026