Tag Archives: scandinavian airlines

SAS announces seven new routes for the summer season 2014

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) today announced the first seven new routes for the 2014 timetable. From the end of March 2014, SAS will be opening Stockholm (Arlanda)-Visby, Stavanger-Edinburgh, Oslo-Edinburgh, Oslo-Aalborg, Oslo-Aberdeen and Oslo-Chania, as well as Copenhagen-Leeds/Bradford. These launches reflect increased customer demand for new nonstop services.

Earlier this fall, SAS opened two new year-round routes, Copenhagen-Bremen and Copenhagen-Humberside, and announced two routes for the winter season 2013: Oslo-Sochi and Copenhagen-Salzburg. In 2013, SAS launched more than 50 new domestic and European routes, as well as the popular Copenhagen-San Francisco route.

The new routes will go on sale gradually from November 21, 2013. SAS will launch the peak summer timetable on Monday, November 25.

New routes from Sweden
Stockholm to: Visby (starts March 30)

New routes from Norway
Oslo to: Edinburgh (April 10-October 11), Aalborg (starts March 30), Aberdeen (starts March 31), Chania (April 12-October 11)
Stavanger to: Edinburgh (April 10-October 11)

New routes from Denmark
Copenhagen to: Leeds/Bradford (starts March 31)
Aalborg to: Oslo (starts March 30)

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-7BX SE-RES (msn 30737) lands at the Stockholm (Arlanda) hub.

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

SAS and Apollo renew their relationship for 2014

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) and travel organization Apollo are expanding their relationship for the next summer season. SAS issued this statement:

SAS and Apollo continue their long working relationship, signing an agreement for the summer season once again. The agreement is for 2014 and involves SAS flying Apollo’s customers from 17 different locations in Sweden, Norway and Denmark. It is worth SEK 910 million.

It has been confirmed that SAS and Apollo will continue their partnership, which goes back many years. Apollo has chosen SAS as their main external airline partner, alongside their own airline company Novair. Important factors for Apollo during the procurement process included the fact that SAS provides a flexible fleet and has safe and reliable production with good punctuality.

This partnership allows Apollo to offer summer departures from 17 different locations in Sweden, Norway and Denmark to more than 20 destinations in the world. The cities where flights will depart from in Sweden are Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö.

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

SAS operates its last McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82 (MD-82) flight, ending a long relationship with Douglas airplanes

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) operated and quietly retired their last McDonnell Douglas DC-9. The last MD-80 was operated on October 26, 2013 on flight SK403 from Stockholm-Arlanda to Copenhagen. This is the first time SAS will be without a Douglas aircraft in its fleet. SAS has operated every Douglas and McDonnell Douglas type since the DC-3 (except the DC-5 and the MD-11).

The last revenue flight (flight SK 403) was operated by McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82 (MD-82) SE-DIR “Nora Viking” (msn 53004) between Stockholm (Arlanda) and Copenhagen on October 25. A special employee-only farewell flight was flown by DC-9-82 (MD-82) LN-RMM (msn 53005) on October 26 over Denmark.

DC-9-82s SE-DIR, OY-KHE (msn 49604) and LN-RMM all operated on the last day of revenue operations (October 25).

One of the aircraft will be donated to the SAS Museum outside of Oslo.

According to a Danish newspaper, the SAS MD-80s operated 3,134,900 flights with the 66 aircraft in the fleet. 2,977,195,000 km were flown since the type was introduced in October 1985.

All of the above information is from Airliners.net.

In other news, SAS recently finalized its Airbus long-haul order. On June 25, 2013, SAS and Airbus signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the order of 12 new long haul aircraft.

This month, SAS and Airbus signed the final long haul aircraft order agreement comprising 4 A330-300 Enhanced and 8 A350-900 plus 6 options for A350-900. The Airbus A330 will be delivered 2015/16 and the Airbus A350 will be delivered from 2018.

Copyright Photo: Moritz Riemer/AirlinersGallery.com. DC-9-82 (MD-82) OY-KHE (msn 49604) in the Star Alliance livery arrives at Copenhagen.

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

Video:

Jettime takes delivery of the first ATR 72-600 for SAS

Jettime (Copenhagen) on October 18 took delivery of the first of six new ATR 72-600 turboprops. ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-600) OY-JZA (msn 1110) was acquired on lease from the Danish leasing company Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC). All the ATR 72-600 aircraft will be assigned to feed the Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) route network as part of a commercial arrangement between SAS and Jettime. All of the aircraft will be painted in SAS livery. The delivery ceremony for this very first ATR 72-600 series aircraft to be operated in Europe’s Nordic countries took place in Toulouse, France, in the presence of the management teams of Jettime, NAC, SAS and ATR. Deliveries of the next five ATR 72-600s will be completed by early 2014.

Jettime:

Lufthansa’ CEO states it may consider a possible SAS purchase

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) may have a new owner. Lufthansa‘s (Frankfurt) CEO Christoph Franz stated yesterday that his Lufthansa Group “could consider” a bid for the ailing carrier.

Read the full report from France 24: CLICK HERE

Lufthansa is also carefully evaluating its relationships with the very successful and aggressive Gulf carriers. So far, the Lufthansa Group has decided to serve those markets on its own but it will not rule out a possible future alliance with the Gulf carriers like Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways.

Read the full story from Reuters: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: TMK Photography/AirlinersGallery.com. SAS is one of the limited number of Boeing 737-600 operators. Boeing 737-683 LN-RPS (msn 28298) departs from the runway at Amsterdam International Airport Schiphol.

Lufthansa:

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

SAS Group’s third quarter net profit rises to $128 million

SAS Group (Scandinavian Airlines-SAS) (Stockholm) reported its third quarter net profit rose to 844 million kroner ($128 million). Facing stiff competition from low-fare airlines, the SAS Group cut 800 jobs last year in order to reduce its costs. The SAS Group issued this financial statement for its third quarter:

SAS delivers positive result for the May-July 2013 quarter:

· Revenue: MSEK 11,593 (11,638)
· Traffic: up 5.6%
· Passenger revenue adjusted for currency: up 5.3%
· Income before tax and nonrecurring items: MSEK 973 (497)
· EBIT margin: 11.6% (9.0%)
· Income before tax: MSEK 1,120 (726)
· Net income for the period: MSEK 844 (534)
· Earnings per share: SEK 2.57 (1.62)
· Cash flow from operating activities: MSEK -276 (-187)

November 2012-July 2013

· Revenue: MSEK 31,123 (31,007)
· Traffic: up 3.8%
· Passenger revenue adjusted for currency: up 5.3%
· Income before tax and nonrecurring items: MSEK 229 (-788)
· EBIT margin: 2.2% (-1.3%)
· Income before tax: MSEK -9 (-2,694)
· Net income for the period: MSEK -174 (-2,436)
· Earnings per share: SEK -0.53 (-7.40)
· Cash flow from operating activities: MSEK 518 (299)

“It is gratifying that our robust and sweeping restructuring program is having the anticipated effect and SAS exits the third quarter strongly with a positive income before tax of MSEK 1,120.

We have made substantial progress in the implementation of our plan to improve our financial position. When the sale of Widerøe is concluded in September, we will have completed the sale of assets corresponding to about SEK 2.7 billion.

In parallel, during the quarter, we were able to increase traffic through a significant improvement in productivity. During the summer, 32 new routes were opened, which contributed to increased passenger revenue at the same time as operating expenses decreased. We have signed a letter of intent with Airbus regarding the renewal of the SAS Group’s long-haul fleet, which bolsters our long-term competitiveness.

Competition in European air traffic remains very intense. Consequently, our focus is on completing the entirely necessary transition to a lower and more flexible cost structure, in parallel with our continued aggressive investment in our customer offering. Our forecast of achieving positive earnings for the full-year remains firmly in place,”

Rickard Gustafson, SAS President and CEO.

Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. SAS has eight Airbus A350-900s on order with the first deliveries in 2018. The new type will replace the older Airbus A340-300s. A340-313X LN-RKG (msn 424) approaches the runway at Washington Dulles International Airport.

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

Finnair to continue to fly to Tel Aviv year-round, rumors of a possible merger with SAS

Finnair (Helsinki) will continue to operate its new route to Tel Aviv also during the winter season. As of November 1, Finnair will continue to fly to Tel Aviv with the similar frequency as during the on-going summer season, twice a week on Mondays and Fridays, but with new timetables that better fit Finnair’s Asian and European connections.

Finnair flights arriving from Asia on Mondays will have a good connection to Tel Aviv. The connecting flight from Helsinki departs at 3.40 p.m. (1540) and arrives in Tel Aviv at 8.05 p.m.(2005) The return flight from Tel Aviv departs at 8.55 p.m. (2055) and arrives in Helsinki at 1.35 a.m. (0135) the next day.

On Fridays the flight departs from Helsinki at 6 a.m. (0600) and arrives in Tel Aviv at 10.25 a.m. (1025). The return flight from Tel Aviv is well connected to Finnair’s Asian flights in the afternoon.

The flights to Tel Aviv are operated with an Airbus A320 aircraft.

Finnair will also operate five scheduled flights a week from Helsinki to Dubai during the winter season. In addition, a charter service is provided on Tuesdays.

In other news, there are media reports of a possible merger with Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm). According to this report by Reuters, new Finnair CEO Pekka Vauramo sees both advantages and disadvantages with a possible merger. other than that, both airlines are not commenting on the reports.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Finally, Finnair has leased three Embraer ERJ 170s to AeroMexico Connect.

Top Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Finnair’s Airbus A320-214 OH-LXF (msn 1712) arrives at Amsterdam.

Finnair:

Bottom Copyright Photo: TMK Photography/AirlinersGallery.com. Finnair’s Embraer ERJ 170-100STD OH-LEL (msn 17000139) in now dressed in full AeroMexico connect colors. The airliner is pictured passing through Toronto (Pearson) on June 15 and will become XA-SAC with the Mexican carrier.

SAS signs MOU for 8 Airbus A350-900s and 4 A330-300s

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) and Airbus (Toulouse) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the order of eight new A350-900 XWB and four A330-300 Enhanced. The agreement marks the launch of SAS’ long haul strategy of an extensive fleet renewal plan, options for more aircraft and a total upgrade of passenger cabins on existing fleet.

SAS recently launched a completely new service concept to create the most modern flight experience for our customers. The customer offer is backed by a comprehensive fleet renewal plan with 65 short haul aircraft already announced and initiated, now complemented with an extensive long haul fleet plan. Key deliverables within the strategy 4Excellence Next Generation have paved the way.

The first A350-900 is due in 2018, and already in 2015, the fleet will be upgraded with the first couple of A330-300 Enhanced to replace A340 when the current leasing agreements expire. In the meantime, SAS will commence the cabin upgrade of seven aircraft in the existing fleet.

SAS’ current long haul fleet consists of seven A340-300 and four A330-300 as well as an additional leased A340 in the fall of 2013.

Eight A350-900 XWB

· SAS will order eight A350-900 with options for another six aircraft.
· The A350-900 has approximately 20% higher passenger capacity than the existing A340/A330 fleet.
· The A350-900 is a completely new aircraft type incorporating advanced aerodynamics, the latest materials and system technology available.
· The Aircraft offers up to 30% lower fuel consumption per passenger seat.
· More comfort, larger windows and a quieter cabin resulting in reduced noise by half compared to e.g. A340.
· The A350 will be delivered to SAS starting 2018.

Four A330-300 Enhanced

· SAS will increase its efficient A330 fleet from four to eight aircraft by ordering four of the A330-300 Enhanced.
· The improvements include a new cabin interior, a 2% fuel burn reduction and a huge increase in range, making it a capable aircraft for all of SAS network.
· The A330-300 Enhanced will be delivered to SAS starting in 2015

Upgrade of seven A330/A340

· SAS will upgrade the passenger cabins on up to seven selected A330/A340.
· The upgrade will consists of new seats throughout the cabin including fully flat seats in Business Class, and throughout the entire cabin a new high definition full video on demand in-flight entertainment system.
· The Cabin upgrade is expected to be completed 2015.

In other news, SAS is supplementing its current Copenhagen-Newark route from June 28 through August 16 with a twice-weekly wet-leased Omni Air International Boeing 767 per Airline Route.

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-343X SE-REE (msn 515) climbs away from the Stockholm (Arlanda) hub.

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

Scandinavian Airlines to serve Bremen and Humberside from Copenhagen and restore the Bangkok route in November

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) for the winter season will add new service from Copenhagen to the German city of Bremen (six flights a week). The route operates all year round from October 28. The route will be served with a 50-seat CRJ every day except Saturday. The airline is also adding a new route from Copenhagen to the oil region of Humberside in northern England. The route operates all year round from October 28. The route will be served with a 50-seat CRJ.

This brings the total number of new routes for SAS in 2013 up to 52.

Furthermore, SAS’ nonstop route from Copenhagen to Bangkok reopens in November with three departures per week. The route opens on November 22 and is open during the winter season. SAS will serve the route with an Airbus A340-300.

In addition to these new routes, SAS is adding more weekly departures on key routes. On the route between Copenhagen and Madrid, SAS is increasing from two departures a week to four (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday).

SAS is also adding more frequencies to the winter timetable on the popular routes between Scandinavia’s capital cities -Copenhagen and Stockholm as well as Copenhagen and Oslo. During high traffic periods, SAS is increasing the number of daily departures from 15 to 16 on both routes.

The SAS winter timetable 2013/14 comes into effect on the last weekend in October.

SAS, the flag carrier for Denmark, Norway and Sweden, operates a fleet of some 130 aircraft to approximately 100 destinations.

Copyright Photo: Dave Glendinning/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-883 LN-RCY (msn 28324) with the “Norwegian Most Punctual Person” picture on the tail taxies to the gate at London (Heathrow). GE Capital Aviation Services Limited (GECAS), the commercial aircraft leasing and financing arm of GE, announced it has delivered seven new leased Boeing 737-800s to SAS to expand and modernize the carrier’s fleet. The aircraft were delivered during the period April 2012 to May 2013 and came from GECAS’ existing order book with Boeing. Additionally, GECAS is scheduled to deliver two new leased 737-800s to SAS in 2014.

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

Scandinavian Airlines changes its cabin service strategy for Europe

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) is planing to introduce SAS Go and SAS Plus on June 9. The new services will replace SAS’s Business Class, Economy Extra and Economy Class. The airline issued this statement:

June 9 marks the launch of the new SAS service concept. SAS Go and SAS Plus will replace Business Class, Economy Extra and Economy Class. This change is a pro-active investment on SAS’ journey to create the most modern flight experience in Europe.

This new service concept was developed in close dialogue with SAS customers and employees. Ideas have also been posted in the My SAS Idea forum.

“The service classes that were created 30 years ago do not reflect the needs of the modern traveller. Time is now in short supply for most people, and our customers want time efficiency and attractive prices, without any hidden charges. SAS Go and SAS Plus meet both of these needs,” says Rickard Gustafson, CEO and Group President of SAS.

Developed for people who fly regularly

The number of passengers who travel more than five times a year is increasing. Traditionally, flying used to be divided into business trips and leisure trips, but passengers now want the same convenience and comfort whether they are travelling on business or for leisure.

“SAS’ most important job is to get customers where they want to go, when they want to go, and to do this as simply as possible. Modern travellers want simplicity and convenience on their journeys, both when they are travelling for business or pleasure. The new service concept gives these passengers exactly what they want,” says Rickard Gustafson.

The prices for SAS Go are similar to the prices of the old Economy tickets. With SAS Plus passengers get better value for money as the “from price” is on average around 30 percent lower than the ‘from price’ of today’s flexible products. And they include more services.

What you need is included

The price of the new service concept includes more than before. SAS Go always includes a checked bag at no extra charge, newspapers, coffee or tea on board, as well as several services to save time, including mobile check-in, and seat selection. SAS Plus includes two checked bags at no extra cost, SAS Fast Track, lounge access, meals and drinks onboard, as well as double the number of EuroBonus points; all of this is on top of the benefits offered by SAS Go. Breakfast is served to all passengers on domestic flights in Sweden, Norway and Denmark.

This change to SAS Go and SAS Plus also includes a brand new concept on board, with the traditional airplane tray being replaced by an airborne cafe. The launch of Our Cafe will see all passengers on board being offered the same range of food and drink.

Read the full statement: CLICK HERE

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS:

SAS promotes its on-time record: