AARHUS, Denmark—Scandinavian Airlines’ (SAS) switch to SkyTeam and eventual entry to the Air France-KLM transatlantic joint venture (JV) will unlock a new era of collaboration for the carrier, according to CEO and President Anko van der Werff.
Van der Werff, speaking during a keynote interview at Routes Europe 2024, highlighted the move as an opportunity to tap into partnerships that were previously out of reach during SAS' 27-year tenure in the Star Alliance, which it co-founded with Air Canada, Lufthansa, Thai Airways and United Airlines in 1997.
“We want to get to a new level of partnerships,” van der Werff said. “I am a firm believer that what we're have right now within Star is setting us back in time. Airline partnerships have evolved. A codeshare cooperation is nice—and we’re definitely going to [codeshare] with our SkyTeam partners—but I think the real benefit is in joint bottom-line management in one way or another.”
SAS' restructuring plan, which received U.S. court approval in March, is expected to conclude by the end of the first half of 2024, enabling the airline to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
As part of the reorganization, SAS has secured investment from a consortium including Air France-KLM and the Danish state, leading to its departure from the Star Alliance on Aug. 31 and the initiation of the process to join SkyTeam. SAS is currently in "advanced negotiations" with SkyTeam and its members to develop and expand extensive commercial relationships.
As well as switching alliances, the carrier is expected to join the SkyTeam transatlantic JV between Air France-KLM, Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic. Van der Werff noted that while SAS was a Star Alliance member, it was excluded from the A++ North Atlantic joint venture between Air Canada, Lufthansa and United Airlines.
“I find in Star Alliance everything to be more self-centred,” van der Werff said. We’ve had all sorts of discussions internally, with Star, and with alliance partners about entering joint ventures but you have to look at the facts—we never got in.”
Van der Werff explained that SAS would soon start the process of “untangling” its existing Star Alliance connectivity and begin adding more routes to SkyTeam hubs. “In a way it’s very simple, but for some passengers it will be somewhat emotional,” he said.
“For people who have always connected in Frankfurt or Munich, they’ll now start connecting Paris and Amsterdam. If they connected in Newark, they'll now connect in [New York] JFK. If they connected in Chicago, it will now be Atlanta.”
SAS plans to launch a new route between Copenhagen and Atlanta in June, operating daily during the summer months using Airbus A330-300 aircraft. A codeshare with Delta is expected to follow, unlocking new onward destinations in the U.S., Caribbean and Latin America.
Van der Werff said SAS’ hub structure in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Oslo would remain the same once its restructure completes, despite the exit of the Swedish state as part of the current Chapter 11 process that leaves Denmark’s government as the sole Scandinavian nation with a shareholding. The Norwegian state previously cut ties in 2018.
He added: “Do you have to have state ownership to serve your customers? I don’t see the link. Sweden is very important for us; Norway is very important for us. We have a 45% slot share at Oslo and we’re not going to give away that. It’s the same with Stockholm—it has always been a good market for us. I’ve consistently said that even if Sweden is not in SAS, you can’t take SAS out of Sweden.”
Van der Werff said that Copenhagen would remain core to the airline’s long-haul network, but SAS hopes to open “multiple” North American routes from Oslo and Stockholm once it enters the SkyTeam transatlantic JV.
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