The former boss of Malaysia Airlines and Aer Lingus is to take up a newly created role at Emirates.
Christoph Mueller is to join the Gulf carrier on September 20 as chief digital and innovation officer.
The position that will see him play a significant management role at the biggest airline by international traffic, Bloomberg News reported.
Mueller was hired by Malaysia Airlines in March 2015 after its reputation and sales were hit by two aircraft losses the previous year, one involving an aircraft that disappeared over the Indian Ocean, the other a missile strike on a jet flying above a Ukrainian war zone.
His strategy halted losses by recasting Kuala Lumpur as a hub for Asian rather than global travel, while cutting 6,000 jobs and shrinking capacity by almost one-third.
Mueller announced in April that he was leaving the airline citing unspecified personal reasons beyond his control.
He agreed to serve a six-month notice period that was due to end this month, though stood down earlier after the carrier announced chief operating officer Peter Bellew as his successor in June.
Mueller streamlined short-haul operations at Aer Lingus, resolved pension disputes and transformed the carrier’s Dublin base into a transatlantic hub. That strategy prompted British Airways owner International Airlines Group to make a successful takeover bid.