Scandinavian Airlines-SAS has made this announcement:

 “Journeys That Matter” is the name of SAS’ new communication concept, which is launched through a new advertising campaign today. The campaign highlights the importance of traveling and represents SAS’ first brand campaign since 2020.

The new communication concept is based on a new brand platform, which is being launched alongside an updated identity.

“We are Travelers” was introduced eight years ago and has proved to be extremely successful. A changed world has led to new travel patterns, which have seen the target group grow from primarily consisting of business travelers to include the expanding leisure market. The new communication concept speaks to this new, wider target group.

“Traveling gives us new perspectives, experiences and lifelong memories. The reasons why people travel are as diverse as the passengers who board each and every aircraft. Here at SAS, we know how important each journey is for our individual customers. That is why our employees do their very best to ensure that every aspect of the customer journey is as good as it possibly can be. Aviation plays a vital role for both individuals and society at large; something that we want to emphasize,” says Karin Nyman, Director of Communications at SAS.

Together with the brand and design agency Bold, SAS has revised and updated its visual identity. The distinct core has been retained, and new warm and personal elements have been added. People are given a more prominent place in in the new image style.

SAS has worked with Åkestam Holst, Bold and The North Alliance since 2013.

“It is a privilege to be part of SAS’ continued journey and yet again revitalize one of Scandinavia’s most iconic brands. SAS is The North Alliance’s founding client and we have been working together for many years to create exponential value for both the brand and the company, with the concept and identity demonstrably playing a vital role. It is now time to repeat the process, although both market and the outside world have changed,” says Jenny Kaiser, CEO of Åkestam Holst NoA.

“Our goal has been to create a strong emotional bond between SAS and its travelers, and an identity which with strong recognition signals quality, care and warmth. In addition to visual components such as a new, specially developed font, colors, images, and layout system, we have also developed new concepts for motion and sound. We are extremely proud of our almost ten-year partnership with SAS and the fact that we have once again been entrusted with renewing their brand,” says Oskar Lübeck, founder and Chief Creative Officer at Bold.

Video:

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS issued this report:

In August 1.9 million passengers traveled with SAS, an increase of approximately 70% compared to the same month last year. SAS’ capacity increased by approximately 64% compared with the same period last year. In comparison with last month, the total number of passengers increased with 40% and capacity was increased by 38%, as operations picked-up again following the 15-day pilot strike. The flown load factor for August was 79%, an improvement of 18 percentage points compared to August last year.

“We are pleased to see operations picking up again in August, where we again had almost 2 million customers travelling with us. The total number of passengers was negatively affected by the pilot-strike as it led to lower sales during that period. We continue executing our restructuring plan, SAS FORWARD that will lead to SAS being a financially stable airline, providing the service our customers are expecting”, says Anko van der Werff, President & CEO of SAS.

SAS scheduled traffic	Aug22	Change1	Nov21- Aug22	Change1
ASK (Mill.)	3,235	56.4%	25,321	109.6%
RPK (Mill.)	2,524	103.7%	17,292	232.9%
Passenger load factor	78.0%	+18.1 pp	68.3%	+25.3 pp
No. of passengers (000)	1,710	64.8%	13,341	170.7%

 

Geographical development, schedule	Aug22           vs.          Aug21		Nov21- Aug22   vs.   Nov20-Aug21
	RPK	ASK	RPK	ASK
Intercontinental	325.6%	118.9%	605.8%	127.2%
Europe/Intrascandinavia	64.0%	45.0%	228.8%	158.7%
Domestic	25.4%	16.4%	79.5%	29.8%

 

SAS charter traffic	Aug22	Change1	Nov21- Aug22	Change1
ASK (Mill.)	426	154.1%	2 026	429.5%
RPK (Mill.)	358	194.2%	1 668	498.4%
Load factor	83.9%	+11.4 pp	82.3%	+9.5 pp
No. of passengers (000)	140	185.1%	619	446.0%

 

SAS total traffic (scheduled and charter)	Aug22	Change1	Nov21- Aug22	Change1
ASK (Mill.)	3,661	63.8%	27,348	119.4%
RPK (Mill.)	2,882	111.8%	18,959	246.4%
Load factor	78.7%	+17.9 pp	69.3%	+25.4 pp
No. of passengers (000)	1,850	70.2%	13,960	176.8%

1 Change compared to same period last year, p p = percentage points

 

Preliminary yield and PASK	Aug22	Nominal change1	FX adjusted change
Yield, SEK	0.99	3.9%	-0.7%
PASK, SEK	0.77	35.3%	29.4%
			Aug22
Punctuality (arrival 15 min)			75.2%
Regularity			98.6%
Change in total CO2 emissions			114.8 %
Change in CO2 emissions per available seat kilometer,			1.1%
Carbon offsetting of passenger related emissions			34.9%

 

Definitions:

RPK – Revenue passenger kilometers

ASK – Available seat kilometers
Load factor – RPK/ASK
Yield – Passenger revenues/RPK (scheduled)

PASK – Passenger revenues/ASK (scheduled)

Change in CO2 emissions per available seat kilometers – SAS passenger related carbon emissions divided with total available seat kilometers (incl non-revenue and EuroBonus tickets), rolling 12 months vs rolling 12 months previous year

Carbon offsetting of passenger related emissions – Share of SAS passenger related carbon emissions compensated by SAS (EuroBonus members, youth tickets and SAS’ staff travel) during the month

 

From fiscal year 2020 we report change in CO2 emissions in total and per Available Seat Kilometers (ASK) to align with our overall goal to reduce our total CO2 emissions by 25% by 2025, compared to 2005.

SAS aircraft photo gallery:

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS issued this report on the third quarter 2022.

SAS results were severely affected by a 15-day pilot strike between July 4 and July 19, causing traffic disruption and leading to some 4,000 canceled flights affecting more than 380,000 passengers. I sincerely apologize to our customers and partners who were affected by the traffic disruptions.

 Overall underlying demand for travel was healthy during the summer quarter and SAS noted an increasing number of passengers eager to travel as restrictions were lifted across the globe. However, the quarter was impacted by major events that influenced the overall result. First and foremost, the 15-day pilot strike in July which had a severe effect on the overall result. In addition, we experienced major operational disruptions during the quarter which affected the whole airline industry. Lastly, on July 5, SAS voluntarily filed for chapter 11, a legal process for financial restructuring in the U.S. The chapter 11 process aims to accelerate the implementation of our transformation plan SAS FORWARD, and ultimately to enable us to become a financially strong, profitable and competitive company for years to come.

 After the close of the quarter, SAS secured a debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing commitment for USD 700 million from Apollo Global Management. This substantial financing commitment is an important milestone in our transformation and it gives us a strong financial position to support our operations throughout the chapter 11 process.

 

MAY 2022–JULY 2022

• Revenue: MSEK 8,580 (3,982)

• Income before tax (EBT): MSEK -1,991 (-1,334)

• Income before tax and items affecting comparability: MSEK -2,081 (-1,213)

• Net income for the period: MSEK -1,848 (-1,336)

• Earnings per common share SEK -0.25 (-0.18)

 

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS DURING THE QUARTER

• The aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to most of the airline industry experiencing difficulty in rebuilding operations. This has led to SAS reducing its summer program by 4,000 of a total of 75,000 flights

• SAS Scandinavia’s pilot unions went on strike from July 4 to 19, resulting in the cancellation of some 4,000 flights and affecting more than 380,000 passengers

• On July 5, a voluntary chapter 11 process was initiated in the US to accelerate the transformation process in the SAS FORWARD plan is expected to lead to a financially stable and profitable airline

 

 

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS AFTER THE QUARTER

• In the beginning of August, SAS entered into a debtor-in-possession (“DIP”) financing credit agreement for USD 700 million with funds managed by Apollo Global Management. The agreement is subject to approval by the U.S. Court in mid-September

 

NOVEMBER 2021–JULY 2022

• Revenue: MSEK 21,173 (8,196)

• Income before tax (EBT): MSEK -6,145 (-5,580)

• Income before tax and items affecting comparability: MSEK -6,315 (-5,471)

• Net income for the period: MSEK -5,810 (-5,779)

• Earnings per common share SEK -0.80 (-0.81)

 

QUARTERLY RESULTS

Looking back at the third quarter, we continued to see increased demand as travel restrictions were eased and this is yet another quarter where we have noted the highest number of passengers since the pandemic started. Compared with the previous quarter passengers flying with SAS increased 30% and the flown load factor reached approximately 78%, up 11 percentage points. Our capacity increased 27% compared with the second quarter. The transformation of SAS has to continue to adapt to the new market conditions in order to be able to remain flexible, competitive and financially strong for the long term. Earnings before tax ended at negative SEK 2.0 billion, a decline of SEK 0.4 billion compared with last quarter, or a decrease of SEK 0.7 billion year-on-year. This was mainly an effect from the 15-day pilot strike.

 

Cost reductions across all of SAS remain in focus to secure our cost competitiveness. Total operating expenses during the quarter ended at SEK 9.7 billion and total operating revenue landed at SEK 8.6 billion for the quarter. Total revenue increased 22% compared with the second quarter, an improvement of approximately SEK 4.6 billion compared with last year, but still 37% below the third quarter in 2019, which was unaffected by COVID-19.

 

The cash balance at the end of the quarter was SEK 6.1 billion. Operational cash flow during the quarter amounted to an outflow of SEK 1.0 billion, compared with an inflow of SEK 0.5 billion for the same period last year.

 

PILOT STRIKE ENDED WITH NEW PILOT AGREEMENT PROVIDING STABILITY

SAS results were severely affected by a 15-day pilot strike between July 4 and July 19, causing traffic disruption and leading to some 4,000 canceled flights affecting more than 380,000 passengers.

 

As previously announced, the estimated effect of the strike was approximately SEK 100-130 million per day (US$9.5-$12.5 million) in lost earnings before tax. To date, the financial impact of the strike is SEK 1.4 billion (US$135 million). I once again apologize to all of our customers and partners affected by the traffic disruptions during this extraordinary event.

 

Negotiations resulted in SAS and SAS Scandinavia pilot unions agreeing to new 5.5-year collective bargaining agreements. SAS plan to offer the 450 previously redundant pilots rehire in tandem with the ramp-up of flight operations in the near term. The agreements include increased work force utilization flexibility and productivity as well as cost reductions in line with the targets set out in the SAS FORWARD plan relating to the pilots’ employment terms and conditions taking SAS one important step closer to achieving our target of SEK 7.5 billion in annual cost savings.

 

UPDATE ON SAS PROGRESS ON TRANSFORMATION PLAN

SAS FORWARD is a comprehensive business transformation plan that was launched in conjunction with the publication of the first quarter report FY 2022 at the end of February to secure long-term competitiveness for SAS in the global aviation industry. The plan aims to strengthen our financial position and to achieve a sustainable cost structure with an annual cost reduction of approximately SEK 7.5 billion. As part of SAS FORWARD, we also plan to raise at least SEK 9.5 billion in new equity and to convert more than SEK 20 billion of debt into common equity. The new equity and debt-to-equity conversions contemplated as part of SAS FORWARD will entail very substantial dilution to existing shareholders.

 

SAS has made progress in these efforts, having identified the vast majority of the SEK 7.5 billion in reduced annual costs and we have continued to invest in our digital capabilities and sustainability efforts. The 5.5-year collective bargaining agreements reached between SAS and the SAS Scandinavia pilots’ unions in July are also a key element of SAS FORWARD. During the quarter, SAS also received support for the plan from the Swedish, Danish and Norwegian governments. All three parties have agreed to convert SAS’ debt and hybrids into common shares. Denmark has also published that, potentially, it may invest new capital, subject to all stakeholders’ participation in SAS FORWARD. However, much remains to be done.

 

To accelerate the implementation of key elements of the plan, SAS voluntarily filed for chapter 11 in the U.S. on July 5. Chapter 11 is a legal process for financial restructuring conducted under U.S. federal court supervision. It has previously been used by a number of large international airlines to restructure. Through this process, SAS aims to reach agreements with key stakeholders, restructure our debt obligations, renegotiate our fleet contracts and emerge with a significant capital injection. SAS’ operations and flight schedule are unaffected by the chapter 11 filing and we continue to serve our customers as normal.

 

After the close of the quarter, SAS secured a debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing commitment for USD 700 million, or approximately SEK 7.0 billion, from Apollo Global Management. DIP financing is a specialized type of bridge financing used by businesses that are restructuring through a chapter 11 process. This substantial financing commitment is an important milestone in our transformation and it gives us a strong financial position to support our operations throughout the chapter 11 process, which is expected to take 9–12 months in total. The DIP financing is still subject to court approval.

 

A DEMANDING QUARTER FOR OUR CUSTOMERS

During the quarter, major operational and infrastructural challenges across numerous customer touchpoints were experienced due to the strong recovery this summer season. The whole airline ecosystem was experiencing difficulties ramping up, and challenges relating to everything from airport capacity to ground staffing were experienced during the summer.

 

SAS acted proactively and implemented measures to safeguard our customers’ travel plans for the summer. We consolidated and removed a number of flights as responsibly as possible and made every effort to mitigate disruption for our customers. We have rehired across the business and expanded our customer service, and we are increasingly developing automated and self-service options for our passengers.

 

DEVELOPMENT DURING THE SUMMER SEASON

Ticket sales ahead of the important summer season were strong but leveled off as we approached the potential start of the strike which eventually was initiated in July. The strike impacted on the overall level of tickets sold during the summer. We will now continue to work hard on rebuilding confidence in SAS and to provide our customers with the service they expect.

 

SAS continues to strengthen our North America network and has established direct summer routes to Toronto from Copenhagen and Stockholm. During the coming winter season, SAS will continue to operate all its pre-pandemic U.S. routes for our travelers.

 

LOOKING AHEAD

We are soon entering the winter season, and we remain cautious due to the prevailing uncertainties around the world. Traffic to and from Asia remains affected by COVID-19 restrictions as well as by the geopolitical situation.

 

Looking ahead to the next summer season we are preparing for substantial recruitments and rehirings that will be initiated in order to meet the expected increased future demand.

 

The FORWARD plan includes positioning SAS as a leader in sustainable aviation.  SAS will continue to invest in modern fuel-efficient aircraft, sustainable aviation fuels, emerging technologies and sustainable products and services.  By 2025 we will reduce our CO2 emissions with at least 25% versus 2005.

 

I am grateful for the hard work my colleagues at SAS are delivering, to ensure that we take the best possible care of our customers.

 

As always, we look forward to welcoming our customers on board our aircraft.

 

 

Anko van der Werff

President and CEO

Stockholm, August 26, 2022

SAS aircraft photo gallery:

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS has secured DIP financing to keep the airline going with this announcement:

SAS AB has announced that it has entered into a debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing credit agreement for USD $700 million (the equivalent of approximately SEK 7.0 billion) with funds managed by Apollo Global Management (Apollo).

DIP financing is a specialized type of bridge financing used by businesses that are restructuring through a chapter 11 process. The DIP financing, along with cash generated from the Company’s ongoing operations, enables SAS to continue meeting its obligations throughout the chapter 11 process. The DIP financing is subject to approval by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

The DIP financing is structured as a delayed draw term loan with a nine-month maturity from the Closing Date. The maturity date can be extended incrementally up to an 18-month term (see further below). SAS selected Apollo’s DIP financing proposal following a competitive process and considers the terms of the DIP financing to be on market terms.

“We are pleased to have secured this financing commitment from investment firm Apollo Global Management, which follows an extensive and competitive process”, says Carsten Dilling, Chairman of the Board of SAS. “With this financing, we will have a strong financial position to continue supporting our on-going operations throughout our voluntary restructuring process in the U.S. Apollo Global Management has a long track record of helping build stronger, more competitive businesses and extensive experience in the aviation sector. With their substantial financing commitment, we can now focus entirely on accelerating the implementation our SAS FORWARD plan, and to continue our more than 75-year legacy of being the leading airline in Scandinavia.”

SAS anticipates receiving Court approval for its DIP financing by mid-September 2022.

Key Terms for the DIP financing

The DIP financing will be provided by Apollo under a term loan agreement (the “DIP Term Loan Agreement”) by way of non-amortizing senior secured super-priority debtor-in-possession delayed-draw term loan facility (the “DIP Facility”) in an aggregate principal amount of USD 700 million (the “Total Aggregate Commitment”), of which USD 350 million will be available following the Court’s approval of the DIP Term Loan Agreement, which is expected to take place in mid-September, and satisfaction of certain conditions precedent under the DIP Term Loan Agreement (the “Closing Date”). The remaining USD 350 million will be available upon the satisfaction of certain other conditions precedent under the DIP Term Loan Agreement.

Loans under the DIP Facility will bear interest at a rate per annum equal to adjusted term SOFR (Secured Overnight Financing Rate) plus 9.0 percent, payable in cash or in kind at the borrower’s election, which may be increased by 2.0 percent per annum during the continuance of any event of default under the DIP Term Loan Agreement.

The DIP Term Loan Agreement requires the payment of certain fees to Apollo on the Closing Date; an upfront fee of 1.0 percent of the Total Aggregate Commitment, an advisor fee of 1.0 percent of the Total Aggregate Commitment, an unused commitment fee of 2.0 percent of the unused amount of the Total Aggregate Commitment per annum and an initial work fee of USD 1 million. Moreover, certain fees are payable upon the occurrence of specific events, including a break-up fee of 1.0 percent of the Total Aggregate Commitment, and an exit fee of 4.0 percent of the Total Aggregate Commitment.

Moreover, under the terms of the DIP Term Loan Agreement, in the event Apollo elects, but is not provided the opportunity, to subscribe for equity interests of the Company on the effective date of the chapter 11 plan of reorganization (the “Effective Date”), with the amount of such equity interests calculated assuming a total enterprise value of the Company of USD 3.2 billion, SAS shall pay Apollo a fee equal to (a) if such fee event occurs within 12 months of the Closing Date, USD 19.5 million; or (b) if such fee event occurs after the 12-month anniversary of the Closing Date, an amount such that Apollo receives an all-in internal rate of return of 23.2 percent on the DIP financing.

In addition, the DIP Term Loan Agreement requires the payment of a 4.0 percent fee of the Total Aggregate Commitment in the event Apollo elects, but is not provided the opportunity, to provide up to 30.0 percent of any new money equity or equity-like financing for the Company that is provided by any third party on the Effective Date, on the same terms and conditions made available to any such third parties.

The DIP Facility matures nine months after the Closing Date, but may be extended for an additional three-month period, at the election of the Company, up to three times, subject to the Company paying an escalating extension fee equal to 0.75 percent (first extension), 1.25 percent (second extension) and 1.50 percent (third extension), respectively, of the Total Aggregate Commitment, together with any accrued and unpaid interest or expenses.

The obligations of Scandinavian Airlines System Denmark-Norway-Sweden (the “Consortium”) as borrower under the DIP Term Loan Agreement will be entitled to super priority administrative expense claim status in the chapter 11 process and will be guaranteed by the Company and all wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Company that are or become debtors in the chapter 11 process (the “Guarantors”). All amounts owing by the Consortium and the Guarantors under the DIP Term Loan Agreement will be secured by substantially all property of the Consortium and the Guarantors, whether real or personal, tangible or intangible, now existing or hereafter acquired (subject to certain customary exclusions), including certain take-off and landing slots at Heathrow Airport; all shares in certain entities of the SAS group, including the Consortium and EuroBonus AB (which owns all rights to the EuroBonus loyalty program); all material registered intellectual property; certain unencumbered aircraft and engines; intercompany receivables; and the products and proceeds of the foregoing.

The DIP Term Loan Agreement contains customary covenants, events of default and representations and warranties. The Company has also undertaken to comply with certain milestones customary for chapter 11 proceedings.

As previously disclosed by the Company, the SAS FORWARD plan incorporates raising at least SEK 9.5 billion in a new equity capital as well as reducing or converting over SEK 20 billion of pre-petition debt, hybrid securities and other obligations into new shares or other forms of consideration. The Company intends to conduct a competitive capital raising process to secure the best available terms and conditions for such equity capital raise in the first half of 2023.

If, pursuant to the equity capital raise process, the Company determines that allowing Apollo to subscribe for shares as described above is in the best interests of the Company and its creditors, Apollo would be permitted to convert its DIP loans into new equity of the Company on the Effective Date, subject to required approvals (including from regulatory authorities, the Court and the Company’s shareholders). In such case, Apollo has agreed to negotiate with the Danish State terms and conditions under which the Danish State would acquire up to USD 250 million of equity interests of the Company associated with Apollo’s conversion of its DIP loans into new equity of the Company.

Because any conversion of the DIP financing commitments may be insufficient to fully meet the objectives of the equity capital raise, the Company may seek to raise the additional equity capital required to meet that level. Furthermore, the Company is the sole party that may negotiate and propose its plan of reorganization during the exclusivity period under the applicable provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, subject to required approvals (including from regulatory authorities, the Court and the Company’s shareholders). Given the Danish State’s expressed interest in possibly participating in the Company’s equity capital raise, the Company intends to work closely with the Danish State towards accommodating such an investment interest in the context of the equity capital raise process.

SAS aircraft photo gallery:

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS released this traffic report for July:

During July more than 3,700 flights were cancelled and 380 000 passengers were affected by the SAS’ Scandinavia pilots unions strike action that was concluded on July 19.

In July 1.3 million passengers traveled with SAS, an increase of approximately 23% compared to the same month last year. SAS’ capacity increased by approximately 8% compared with the same period last year. In comparison with last month, the total number of passengers decreased with 32% and capacity was decreased by 23%, which was a result from the 15-day pilot strike. The flown load factor for July was 82%, an improvement of 21 percentage points compared to July last year.

“We sincerely apologize to our customers who were affected by the July strike. We are happy operations returned to normality again allowing us to start regaining our customers’ trust. We also continue executing our restructuring plan, SAS FORWARD and filed for chapter 11 in the US on 5th of July to accelerate the transformation process that will lead to a financially stable airline, that will be able to deliver the service our customers are expecting”, says Anko van der Werff, President & CEO of SAS.

SAS scheduled traffic	Jul22	Change1	Nov21- Jul22	Change1
ASK (Mill.)	2,251	-2.2%	22,086	120.6%
RPK (Mill.)	1,871	36.5%	14,767	273.3%
Passenger load factor	83.1%	23.6 pp	66.9%	27.4 pp
No. of passengers (000)	1,207	18.0%	11,631	198.9%

 

Geographical development, schedule	Jul22           vs.          Jul21		Nov21- Jul22   vs.   Nov20-Jul21
	RPK	ASK	RPK	ASK
Intercontinental	129.4%	-2.0%	726.8%	128.6%
Europe/Intrascandinavia	42.1%	11.4%	290.1%	192.7%
Domestic	-40.1%	-44.2%	90.2%	31.7%

 

SAS charter traffic	Jul22	Change1	Nov21- Jul22	Change1
ASK (Mill.)	396	152.7%	1,600	644.3%
RPK (Mill.)	304	126.8%	1,310	733.8%
Load factor	76.8%	-8.8 pp	81.9%	8.8 pp
No. of passengers (000)	118	111.3%	478	645.9%

 

SAS total traffic (scheduled and charter)	Jul22	Change1	Nov21- Jul22	Change1
ASK (Mill.)	2,646	7.7%	23,687	131.6%
RPK (Mill.)	2,175	44.6%	16,077	290.9%
Load factor	82.2%	21.0 pp	67.9%	27.7 pp
No. of passengers (000)	1,325	22.8%	12,110	206.1%

1 Change compared to same period last year, p p = percentage points

 

Preliminary yield and PASK	Jul22	Nominal change1	FX adjusted change
Yield, SEK	1.05	20.9%	4.1%
PASK, SEK	0.87	68.7%	61.2%
			Jul22
Punctuality (arrival 15 min)			67.0%
Regularity			75.4%
Change in total CO2 emissions			118.2 %
Change in CO2 emissions per available seat kilometer,			0.8%
Carbon offsetting of passenger related emissions			32.6%

 

Definitions:

RPK – Revenue passenger kilometers

ASK – Available seat kilometers
Load factor – RPK/ASK
Yield – Passenger revenues/RPK (scheduled)

PASK – Passenger revenues/ASK (scheduled)

Change in CO2 emissions per available seat kilometers – SAS passenger related carbon emissions divided with total available seat kilometers (incl non-revenue and EuroBonus tickets), rolling 12 months vs rolling 12 months previous year

Carbon offsetting of passenger related emissions – Share of SAS passenger related carbon emissions compensated by SAS (EuroBonus members, youth tickets and SAS’ staff travel) during the month

 

From fiscal year 2020 we report change in CO2 emissions in total and per Available Seat Kilometers (ASK) to align with our overall goal to reduce our total CO2 emissions by 25% by 2025, compared to 2005.

SAS aircraft photo gallery:

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS made this announcement:

After 15 days of strike, SAS and SAS Scandinavia pilots’ unions have concluded mediation. The parties have agreed on new 5.5-year collective bargaining agreements and flights operated by SAS Scandinavia will resume according to their regular traffic program as soon as possible.

Following a 15-day strike action, SAS and SAS Scandinavia pilots’ unions* have reached an agreement on new collective bargaining agreements and the pilot strike has ended.

“I am pleased to report that we now have come to an agreement with all four pilot unions for SAS Scandinavia and the strike has ended. Finally, we can resume normal operations and fly our customers on their much longed-for summer holidays. I deeply regret that so many of our passengers have been impacted by this strike,” said Anko van der Werff, President & CEO.

The 5.5-year agreements between SAS and the SAS Scandinavia pilots’ unions are a key element of SAS’ comprehensive business transformation plan SAS FORWARD, as they provide the stability and predictability required by potential investors.

The agreements include cost savings in line with the set targets in the SAS FORWARD plan relating to the pilots’ terms and conditions, taking SAS one important step closer to achieving its SAS FORWARD target of SEK 7.5 billion in annual cost savings.

In short, the agreements imply increased productivity for the SAS Scandinavia pilots and increased flexibility in seasonal production. The terms and conditions of the agreements also yield a lowered unit cost for the SAS Scandinavia pilots.

Additionally, as part of the agreement between SAS and SAS Scandinavia pilots’ unions, a number of pending litigation previously initiated by the pilots’ unions and/or individual pilots against SAS will be withdrawn. In accordance with a restructuring support agreement to be entered into between the parties in the chapter 11 process, SAS has granted the unions a general unsecured pre-petition claim for the pilots in the amount of SEK 1.0 bn in SAS voluntary financial restructuring process. Distributions under that unsecured claim will be capped at SEK 100 million and made over 5.5 years, corresponding to the term of the agreements.

Finally, SAS has committed to the rehire, and subsequent full-time employment, of 450 pilots in tandem with the ramp-up of flight operations until 2024.

With these labor agreements in place, SAS will now be able to proceed with its process to secure funding to support the company’s on-going operations – which it expects to finalize within the next few weeks – throughout its voluntary financial restructuring process.

“With these agreements in place, the pilots are doing their part in this difficult situation. We now get on with the important work of progressing our transformation plan SAS FORWARD and building a strong and competitive SAS for generations to come, with the support of our pilots’ unions and all other stakeholders. The strike has been a tough situation for our customers, for our employees, and for our company as a whole. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to all of my SAS colleagues who have worked tirelessly these past weeks to help our customers,” Anko van der Werff concludes.

The agreements between SAS and the SAS Scandinavia pilots’ unions are subject to approval by the members of all four unions and, as SAS is currently undergoing a voluntary financial restructuring in the U.S., the final agreements are also subject to approval by a U.S. federal court.  The company expects to receive the necessary approvals within the next few weeks.

As previously announced, the estimated effect of the strike is approximately SEK 100-130 million per day (US$9.5-$12.5 million) in lost revenue and costs. To date, the financial impact of the strike is expected to exceed SEK 1.5 billion (US$145 million). It is too early to provide more specific information about the total financial impact of the strike, but after 15 days of strike action approximately 380,000 passengers have been affected by approximately 3,700 canceled flights.

Some traffic disruptions will continue during the following days while normal traffic is resumed.

SAS aircraft photo gallery: