Scandinavian Airlines System

Scandinavian Airlines System (IATA: SK, ICAO: SAS, and Callsign: Scandinavian) is a multinational airline known as SAS AB, established in Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The hub and main operations center is Copenhagen-Kastrup Airport while the administrative headquarters are in Stockholm.

History

SAS AB is an airline that was founded on August 1, 1946 when the national airlines DDL of Denmark, SILA of Sweden and DNL of Norway formed a consortium for air traffic control in Scandinavia.. Operations only began on September 17, 1946, with the addition of the Swedish airline ABA instead of SILA. The companies began coordinating operations in 1948 and finally led to the current management form of the SAS Consortium in 1951.

It began its intercontinental operations on August 1, 1946. The first plane to join the SAS fleet is a DC-4, which will allow operations to New York and South America, starting this year.

The SAS Consortium, as it is currently known, was established on February 8, 1950. The agreement is initially valid for the next 25 years, although it has been renewed until 2020. Already at the beginning of the fifties, SAS included in its routes to points as disparate as Tokyo, Bangkok or Nairobi.

In 1952 SAS made the first transatlantic flight for exploratory purposes, during the delivery flight of a DC-6B from Los Angeles to Copenhagen, passing through Thule (Greenland). This would be the prelude to the first flight that would use the polar routes as a shortcut, linking Copenhagen with Los Angeles from November 1954.

With the arrival of the first piston-powered DC-7C, routes to Moscow and Riga are opened. These planes would also be used for the Copenhagen-Anchorage-Tokyo route through the previously mentioned polar routes.

In 1959, SAS becomes the first airline in the world to put the Caravelle, its first jet aircraft in the fleet, into operation. The route assigned to it will be Copenhagen-Beirut.

Already in 1960, other jet planes joined the fleet, in this case the DC-8 that would fly to New York and Tokyo. Already during this decade we can find in the folder of destinations the cities of Chicago, Montreal and Seattle.

SAS becomes the launch customer airline for the DC-9-41 and DC-9-21, aircraft that will be used from 1968 on medium-haul and domestic routes.

The first Boeing 747 delivered to the company, in February 1971, will be used for the route between Copenhagen and New York, later more units of this model would be used to connect Bergen with the North American city. The route to Delhi is opened in 1973.

The arrival of the DC-10-30, in 1974, coincides with the withdrawal of the Caravelle from service, and two years later the SAS fleet becomes exclusively jet-engined aircraft. The presence of long-haul aircraft allows the company to create routes linking the cities of Oslo and Stockholm with New York via Copenhagen.

Already in the eighties, SAS began to carry out internal flights thanks to the Fokker F-27 and a hovercraft that linked the cities of Copenhagen and Malmoe.

In 1985, the Boeing 747s were withdrawn from service, while flights to South Africa were no longer offered. This year the first of the MD-81 destined for medium and short distance routes is received.

In 1988 the fleet was extensively renewed. Nine intercontinental-range Boeing 767s, 61 MD-80s and Fokker F-50s (worth $1.5 billion) are ordered. During the 1980s, alliances and contacts with other airlines proliferated, among which we can name British Midland, Continental Airlines, Swissair and Lan Chile.

Already in the 1990s, alliances continued, allowing passengers to offer numerous codeshare destinations with other airlines. Thus, with Varig the Copenhagen-Rio/Sao Paulo route opens.

In 1995, a new renewal of the fleet led SAS to acquire 41 Boeing 737-600s to be delivered starting in 1998. In that year, SAS announced its strategic alliance with Lufthansa and United Airlines. The following year SAS Cargo began operations with Boeing 747-200BC on the Gothenburg-New York, Gothenburg-Osaka/Macau and Delhi routes. This same year SAS becomes the first European airline to put the MD-90 into operation. 1997 is a fundamental year in the development of the company. SAS together with Air Canada, Lufthansa, Thai Airways and United Airlines announce the formation of the Star Alliance. This year saw the incorporation of Saab 2000 aircraft and the order for 15 Dash-8-400 turboprops for the domestic market. Before the end of the year Varig will join the Star Alliance.

During 1998, the Finnish airline Air Botnia was acquired for domestic flights. Added to the order for 41 Boeing 737-600 are another 14 confirmed and an option for 40 more.

In 1999, the company's freighter fleet was replaced by MD-11Fs through a wet lease regime (aircraft and crew rental) to Lufthansa Cargo. Another major fleet renewal is looming over the company, with the incorporation of the first of the Boeing 737-700 and the order for 10 Airbus A330 and A340-300, with an option for 7 more. Likewise, the order for 12 Airbus A321 was formalized, with an option for 10 more during the year 2000. In this year, the first of the Boeing 737-800 joined the fleet.

In 2001 the Airbus A340 entered service. In this fateful year for aviation worldwide, SAS suffers the biggest accident in its history. On a foggy day at Milan Linate airport, an MD-87 collided with a private Cessna during takeoff. The 110 occupants of the Scandinavian plane perished, as well as the 4 Cessna and 4 ground workers. Additionally, the company issues its first share on the stock market, on July 6 it officially debuts on the Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm stock exchanges.

This same year, the Norwegian airline Braathens was acquired and the first of the Airbus A321-200 entered service.

During 2002 SAS acquired the Norwegian regional airline Wideroe, entering into service with the company the first of the Airbus A330-300 ordered. These aircraft will be mainly intended for traffic on routes over the North Atlantic.

SAS owned: SAS Cargo, Braathens in Norway, Widerøe in Norway, Blue1 in Finland and Spanair in Spain. It also owned: Estonian Air (49%), Air Baltic (47.2%) in Latvia, Air Greenland (37.5%), Balearic Airlines (25%), Skyways Holdings (25%) and BMI British Midland (20%).

In the summer of 2007, it announced the sale of the Spanish company Spanair and its stake in British Midland, to concentrate on its business in Northern Europe, where it is the undisputed leader. The company's intention is to complete the process in the first quarter of 2008 at the latest. To date, the only firm offer for Spanair is that of the Marsans group, the former owner of Spanair.

On May 1, 2013, Scandinavian Airlines Flight 908, an A330 was cleared for takeoff at Newark Liberty Airport. The pilot approached an Embraer E145 ExpressJet aircraft (doing business as United Express Flight 4226), causing an empennage (tail) loss incident.

That same year he sold 80% of his stake in his holding, in Widerøe.

Destinations

Fleet

Current Fleet

The SAS fleet consists of the following aircraft, with an average age of 8.2 years (as of February 2023):

Scandinavian Airlines Fleet

Aircraft	Total	Orders	Seats				Notes
			C	K	And	Total
ATR 72-600	6	-	0	0
Airbus A319-132	4	-	0	0	141	141	OY-KBO painted with ancient colors
Airbus A320-200	11	0	0	0	TBA	TBA
Airbus A320-251N	35	29	0	0	TBA	TBA	LN-RGL, entry into service on 26 October
Airbus A321-232	4	1	0	0	198	198
Airbus A321-253NX	3	-	22	12	123	157
Airbus A330-300	7	-	34	35	195	264	SE-REF Painted with Star Alliance colors
Airbus A350-941	4	-
Boeing 737-700	6	-	0	0	141	141
Bombardier CRJ900 NextGen	20	-	0	0	88	88
Total	100	30

Historical Fleet

Historical fleet of Scandinavian Airlines System

Airplane	Total	Introduced	Withdrawal	Notes
ATR 42-500	1	2009	2010
Airbus A300B2	4	1980	1984
Airbus A300B4	1	1980	1983
Airbus A340-300	8	2001	2020
BAC 1-11-301AG One-Eleven	1	1967	1968
Boeing 737-400	4	2009	2013
Boeing 737-500	21	1993	2013
Boeing 737-600	30	1998	2019
Boeing 737-800	35	2000	2023
Boeing 747-100	2	1982	1983
Boeing 747-200	8	1982	1997
Boeing 767-200	2	1990	1992
Boeing 767-300	16	1990	2004
Bombardier CRJ-200	7	2009	2015
Bombardier CRJ-1000	3	2018	2019
Bae 146-100	1	2008	2008
Bae 146-200	2	2007	2009
Bae 146-300	1	2008	2009
Avro RJ70	2	2007	2009
Avro RJ85	3	2007	2009
Convair CV-990	2	1962	1966
Dash 8-400	24	2000	2013
McDonnell Douglas DC-8-30	7	1960	1971
McDonnell Douglas DC-8-50	4	1966	1971
McDonnell Douglas DC-8-60	18	1967	1986
Fokker 50	6	2004	2010
McDonnell Douglas DC-10	12	1974	1990
McDonnell Douglas DC-9	71	1967	2002
McDonnell Douglas MD-80	82	1985	2013
McDonnell Douglas MD-90	8	1996	2006
Saab 340	2	1997	1998
Saab 2000	1	2014	2016

Accidents and incidents

• On December 27, 1991: Scandinavian Airlines' 751 flight, a McDonnell Douglas MD-81 aircraft to Copenhagen suffered a flaw in both engines. The pilot had to land 15 km from Stockholm-Arlanda Airport. Since the plane has the engines back, the wing snow to take off was to stop them. The pilot fulfilled the protocol by descending the speed but a system of this so-called Automatic Speed Restoration (RAE) increased the speed of the ship. There were 92 wounded, dead.

• On October 8, 2001: Detachment of Linate Airport. A McDonnell Douglas MD-87 aircraft operating as flight 686, crashed into a Cessna Citation II at Milan-Linate Airport. All MD-80 passengers, Cessna and 4 people at the airport died.

• On 9 September 2007: A Bombardier Dash 8-400 (Q400), covering the local Copenhagen-Aalborg route, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS SK1209), with 69 passengers and 4 crew members on board, was forced to make an emergency landing at the Aalborg airport at 16:10, when problems were detected in one of the landing trains. During the landing manoeuvre, the right landing gear burst, causing the right wing tilt, to then start the engine fire due to the impact on the landing strip. The fire was suffocated by the airport's emergency services. During the evacuation of the aircraft five passengers were slightly injured.

• On 1 May 2013: Scandinavian Airlines flight 908, an Airbus A330 was cleared for take-off at Newark Liberty Airport, USA. The pilot went to an Embraer ERJ 145 ExpressJet (which operates as United Express Flight 4226), causing an incident of loss of packing.