The founder of no-frills airline Easyjet, Stelios Haji-Ioannou, is to step down from his post as chairman earlier than expected.

I have no present intention to sell any Easyjet shares in the near future

Stelios Haji-Ioannou

Mr Haji-Ioannou announced in April that he would be standing down, but said he would be leaving the role in early 2003.

But thanks to the speedy takeover of budget airline Go, he now says he will quit the post when Easyjet's full-year results are announced on 26 November.

In a statement, Mr Haji-Ioannou said that the acquisition of budget airline Go was now complete, and that the integration of the two airlines was "well under way".

Easyjet's new chairman will be Sir Colin Chandler, the former chairman of Vickers Defence Systems.

Future plans

Mr Haji-Ioannou will remain chairman of the other companies within the Easy empire, and he said that they were progressing well.

"As a result of concentrating my efforts on my newer businesses over the last year, I am pleased to announce that Easyinternetcafe has turned the corner and I am looking forward to helping it grow into a substantial business in the next 2-3 years," he said

He said the car rental business Easycar was on track for a stock market flotation at the end of 2004, and he was also working on a new business called Easycinema.

Mr Haji-Ioannou currently owns almost 22% of Easyjet and said he would remain a "significant" shareholder in the airline for a very long time.

"I have no present intention to sell any Easyjet shares in the near future," he said.

Mr Haji-Ioannou also said that he was confident that the results for the year to September would be in line with expectations.

During early trade on the London Stock Exchange, Easyjet shares were up by more than 7% at 261.5p.