Tag Archives: scandinavian airlines

SAS to go to double daily to the New York area from Copenhagen, will drop the Stavanger – Houston route

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) will use a PrivatAir (Geneva) Boeing 737-700 (HB-JJA) for an additional new flight to Newark from Copenhagen. As a consequence, the carrier is dropping the relatively-new Stavanger – Houston (Bush Intercontinental) route.

The carrier issued this statement:

SAS is boosting its offer to Scandinavian frequent flyers with more than 60,000 seats between Copenhagen and the New York area in 2016. The additional evening departure will be operated by PrivatAir with a reconfigured Boeing 737-700 that has most recently flown the Stavanger-Houston route.

From the start of the SAS winter program in late October, SAS will fly twice daily to the New York area from Copenhagen to further reinforce its position as the number one Scandinavian carrier:

SAS is currently servicing Copenhagen-Newark with a daily midday departure. The new SAS flight will also depart daily – except Tuesdays – at 18.25 from Copenhagen and return from New ark at 22.55.

SAS will continue these double daily Newark flights next year and so offer more than 60,000 extra seats between the New York area and Copenhagen in 2016, which corresponds to approximately 25% increase.

Closure of oil route

As a consequence of reduced activity in the oil industry, SAS has experienced a severe decrease in demand and thus passenger loads on the Stavanger Houston route. Hence, SAS no longer has sound commercial grounds for continuing this niche route.

“The oil route came out of creative and constructive product development between SAS and our core clients in the oil industry. We have done all we can to make it viable, however, we have had to accept that the downturn in the industry unfortunately is also impacting us, hence our decision to switch the aircraft to Copenhagen-New York, where the market offers far more potential right now,” says Eivind Roald.

The last flight from Stavanger will depart on October 23 returning in Stavanger on October 24. SAS will do its utmost to make alternative arrangements for all customers who have flight bookings after these dates.

SAS will increase its capacity with approximately 20% from Stavanger to Copenhagen by switching aircraft type from Bombardier CRJ900 to Airbus A320 and A321 on several departures.

Product and timetable

The route is operated by PrivatAir on behalf of SAS with a Boeing 737 that up until the end of the year will be configured with Business seats only, 44 seats. The aircraft will then be reconfigured with 20 Business seats and 66 Go seats. The service will correspond to a full SAS inflight product to overseas destinations except with an iPad entertainment system.

Departures daily from Copenhagen (CPH) except Tuesdays at 18.25 arriving Newark (EWR) 21.35.

Departures daily from Newark (EWR) except Tuesdays at 22.55 arriving Copenhagen (CPH) 12.45 (next day).

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS launches a new route to Hong Kong today

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) first departure from Stockholm (Arlanda) to Hong Kong takes off today, making it the only airline to fly direct between Scandinavia and Hong Kong. At the same time, SAS is reopening its lounge at Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport following extensive refurbishment, which will provide SAS customers with an even better experience.

The new route is SAS’s fourth direct connection between Scandinavia and Asia, and SAS is the only airline to fly direct between Scandinavia and Hong Kong. Hong Kong is one of the world’s busiest airports and is the largest in the world in terms of freight.

Timetable Arlanda – Hong Kong

Departures from Arlanda on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays on flight SK963 at 3 pm (1500), arriving in Hong Kong at 7.20 am (0720) local time.

Departures from Hong Kong on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays on flight SK964 at 9.05 am (0905) local time, arriving at Arlanda at 2.35 pm (1435).

SAS currently offers long haul flights from Scandinavia to New York, Washington DC, Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong.

During 2016 SAS will open three more routes; Stockholm to Los Angeles, Oslo to Miami and Copenhagen to Miami.

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-343 LN-RKH (msn 497) departs from the Arlanda hub in this winter view.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS to open new routes to Los Angeles and Miami

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) is expanding and opening three new nonstop routes to USA in 2016. The new routes being launched are Los Angeles from Stockholm (Arlanda), Miami from Oslo and Miami from Copenhagen.

SAS is also increasing the number of departures from Stockholm (Arlanda) to New York (JFK) and Chicago (O’Hare) and between Copenhagen and Shanghai.

That means that SAS will now offer over 330,000 additional seats on its intercontinental routes in 2016.

The first flight to Los Angeles will depart on March 14, 2016 and SAS will have daily departures from Stockholm to Los Angeles throughout the summer season and five-six departures a week in the winter season.

The first flights to Miami are expected to depart in the fall of 2016 and the Miami route will have a daily departure from Scandinavia.

Timetable Stockholm Arlanda – Los Angeles

Daily departures from Arlanda (SK933) at 09.50 arriving in Los Angeles 12.15.
Daily departures from Los Angeles (SK934) at 14.15 arriving at Arlanda 10.00.

Timetable Copenhagen – Miami

Departures Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays from Copenhagen (SK953) 09.30 arriving in Miami 13.50.

Departures Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from Miami (SK954) 15.50 arriving in Copenhagen 07.10.

Timetable Oslo – Miami

Departures Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays from Oslo(SK955) 09.35 arriving in Miami 13.50.
Departures Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays from Miami (SK956) 15.50 arriving in Oslo 07.05.

Stockholm – Hong Kong, September 2015

In addition to the new routes, SAS is increasing the frequency of its long haul routes starting with the winter program. SAS will then offer daily flights on the following routes:

Copenhagen – Shanghai (two additional departures each week)
Stockholm – Chicago (one additional departure each week)
Stockholm – New York (one additional departure each week)
Oslo – New York (one additional departure each week)
Copenhagen – San Francisco (one additional departure each week)

These new long haul routes and additional departures mean SAS will now offer its customers over 330,000 more seats on its intercontinental routes in 2016. SAS currently offers long haul flights from Scandinavia to New York, Washington DC, Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, Beijing, Shanghai and Tokyo.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS to retire the last Blue1 Boeing 717 on November 6

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) is now planning to phase out the last Boeing 717 with subsidiary Blue1 (Helsinki) on November 6. The last 717 flight is expected to be flight SK724 from Stockholm (Arlanda) to the Helsinki base according to Airline Route.

As previously reported, Blue1 will sell its entire Boeing 717-200 fleet to Volotea and Delta Air Lines and replace them with Boeing 737-600s transferred from Scandinavian Airlines.

Blue1 aircraft slide show:

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-Europe-1/Airlines-Europe-1/Blue1

SAS expands the number of flights to the USA and Asia

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) is increasing the number of departures to seven flights a week from Stockholm (Arlanda) to Chicago (Oo’Hare) and seven a week from Copenhagen to Shanghai.

The new departures are part of the SAS plan to expand its long haul fleet network that also includes opening all-new routes.

Earlier this year, SAS announced additional departures from Oslo and Stockholm to New York (JFK) and from Copenhagen to San Francisco.

SAS now announces three additional weekly departures – two extra flights to Shanghai and one more to Chicago. This means a daily service is now available on both routes. The improved services will coincide with the opening of the winter traffic program in late October and means that in winter 2015/16, SAS will offer 108 weekly departures between Scandinavia and the USA and 50 weekly departures between Scandinavia and Asia.

The new departures from Copenhagen to Shanghai will be on Mondays and Wednesdays. The new departures from Shanghai to Copenhagen will be Tuesdays and Thursdays. The new departure from Stockholm to Chicago and return will be on Sunday.

As of the start of the winter traffic program on October 26, 2015, the below five routes will all be upgraded to daily year-round service:

Copenhagen – Shanghai
Copenhagen – San Francisco
Stockholm – Chicago
Stockholm – New York
Oslo – New York

SAS offers long haul flights from Scandinavia to New York, Washington, Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, Beijing, Shanghai and Tokyo. In September 2015, SAS will open a new route from Stockholm to Hong Kong.

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. SAS Airbus A330-343 LN-RKH (msn 497) departs from the Stockholm (Arlanda) hub.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS signs a new one-year contract with the Norwegian Pilot Union (NSF), strike avoided

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) has issued the following statement:

SAS has signed a new modern collective bargain agreement with the Norwegian pilot union NSF. The negotiations have reached its objective after a strike that lasted for seven days and involved 17 pilots. SAS has now agreed with all of its pilot unions on new collective bargain agreements that create conditions for future expansion.

Job security, reduced complexity and SAS need to act faster in relation to the market’s demand have been central parts in the negotiations for a new collective bargain agreement with the pilot unions during this spring. The Norwegian pilot union NSF signed the agreement as the last of the pilot unions and the agreement is now subject to a member voting.

The new collective bargain agreement is in force for 1 year and valid from April 1, 2015.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS reaches a new collection labor agreement with its Swedish pilots union

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) has issued this statement:

SAS has signed a new modern collective bargain agreement with the Swedish pilot union SPF. The negotiations have reached the targets within set timeframe and thus there will be no industrial action (strike) by the pilots in Sweden. SAS has now reached agreements with three of the four pilot unions on new contracts, which means that most of the SAS pilots are now covered by the new Scandinavian collective bargain agreement.

SAS’ objective is to invest in the aircrafts of the future, destinations and services that meet customers’ demand. Therefore, it is required that SAS adapts the collective bargain agreements to today’s competitive environment.

The new collective bargain agreement is valid for two years and shall enter into force on 21 May 2015.

SAS had as a preventative measure cancelled a limited number of flights to avoid having travelers being stranded in the event of a strike. We hope to return to normal traffic in Sweden as soon as possible.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS launches its summer schedule with 11 new routes

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) has started it summer schedule with 11 new routes. The airline issued this report on the new routes and summer services:

SAS is launching its summer timetable for 2015 with a number of new destinations from Scandinavia. Eleven new routes are being launched and many popular summer destinations are also returning.

From March 29, SAS will gradually be introducing its summer timetable and launching a total of eleven brand new routes, both from its main Scandinavian hubs and regional airports such as Gothenburg and Bergen.

New Routes

From Sweden

– Stockholm–Budapest: Departures on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. First departure March 29. No departures during the high season.
– Stockholm – Riga: Departures daily. First departure 29 March.
– Stockholm–Faro: Departures on Saturdays, plus Wednesdays in the high season. First departure April 4.
– Stockholm–Ankara: Departures on Thursdays. First departure July 2.
– Gothenburg–Alanya (Gazipasa): Departures on Wednesdays. First departure July 1.
– Gothenburg–Dublin: Departures on Saturdays, plus Wednesdays and Sundays in the high season. First departure April 11.

From Denmark

– Copenhagen–Edinburgh: Departures on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, and daily during the high season. First departure March 29.
– Copenhagen–Ankara: Departures on Saturdays, plus Mondays and Wednesdays in the high season. First departure June 6.

From Norway

– Oslo–Salzburg: Departures on Saturdays. First departure May 23.
– Bergen–Gothenburg: Departures on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. First departure March 30. No departures during the high season.

Summer routes re-opening

Sweden

From Stockholm to Chania, Cagliari, Olbia, Biarritz, Palermo, Pisa, Pristina, Bristol, and Bodø, Pula, Bologna, Milan, Alanya.
From Gothenburg to Pula, Nice, Athens, Pristina, Alicante, and Palma de Mallorca.

Denmark

From Copenhagen to Dubrovnik, Split, Pula, Montpellier, Biarritz, Chania, Thessaloniki, Palermo, Naples, Pisa, Gazipasa, and Alicante.
From Billund we are also re-opening the route to Gazipasa in Turkey.

Norway

From Trondheim to Malaga and Barcelona. From Bergen to Split, Dubrovnik, Nice, Malaga, Barcelona, and Alanya (Gazipasa).
From Stavanger to Split, Nice, Malaga, Barcelona, and Alanya (Gazipasa).
From Kristiansand to Split.
From Oslo to Dubrovnik, Pula, Olbia, Pisa, Palermo, and Pristina.

Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A321-232 OY-KBF (msn 1807) prepares to touch down in Tenerife Sur.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS posts a wider fiscal first quarter net loss

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (SAS Group) (Stockholm posted a wider fiscal first quarter (through January 31, 2015) net loss of SEK 640 million ($73.7 million), a significant increase from its SEK 112 million ($12.9 million) reported in the same quarter a year ago.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: SPA/AirlinersGallery.com. SAS has been selling some of its valuable London Heathrow (LHR) slots to raise capital in the current crunch. As a result, SAS is using larger aircraft into LHR. Boeing 737-883 LN-RRK (msn 32278) completes the final approach to the runway at LHR.

SAS aircraft slide show:

SAS sells another slot pair at London Heathrow Airport

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) has sold another slot pair at London’s slot-controlled Heathrow Airport. The airline issued this statement:

SAS has entered into a slot transaction with Turkish Airlines that will take over one afternoon slot-pair at London Heathrow from SAS at the beginning of the winter traffic program on October 25, 2015.

The transaction will generate a positive earnings impact of $22 million for SAS to be accounted for during the second quarter with a corresponding cash effect during calendar year 2015.

As part of creating balance between frequencies and capacity during the day and following the disposition of a morning slot-pair earlier in February 2015, SAS has entered into a second slot-pair transaction. Following this transaction, SAS will have 19 daily slot-pairs at London Heathrow and will still be the fifth largest airline operating at London Heathrow, measured in number of weekly departures. After this transaction, SAS does not have any plans to reduce its portfolio of slots.

SAS currently operates from London Heathrow to Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Oslo, Stockholm and Stavanger. SAS will continue to offer a strong and comprehensive network between Scandinavia and London Heathrow with the intention to keep the seat capacity to/from London Heathrow unchanged through the use of larger aircraft on remaining departures. As noted earlier in February 2015, SAS will consider the use of other airports in the London-region.

Following this transaction, Turkish Airlines will have 38 weekly slot-pairs at London Heathrow Airport.

Copyright Photo: SAS has pledged to use larger aircraft into London Heathrow. Scandinavian Airlines-SAS Airbus A321-232 LN-RKI (msn 1817), which formerly had the image of H.C. Andersen, taxies across the ramp at LHR.

SAS aircraft slide show: