The jury is still out on whether Scandinavian Airlines' new simplified one-way pricing structure is working. Early indications are that yield deterioration of 5%-10% was offset by improved load factor, up 6.7 points compared to last year. October should provide a more complete picture.

The fare structure puts SAS somewhat at odds with its Star partners, but Lindegaard sees no alternative because people no longer accept the old structure "and business class is still too expensive." He further believes that Star has to revise its pricing structure to better reflect the realities of competition today.