3 A321LR for SAS from H1 2020
#61
Join Date: Mar 2016
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If I remember correct, ARN-MIA were only 1 rotation per week last year. So 2 rotations per week is a 100% increase.
#62
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SAS is increasingly the CPH-first-airline with ARN and OSL being to SK what MSP is to DL. CPH is SK's version of DL's JFK, ATL, SEA and LAX rolled up into one.
At least the A321LRs should help SK to keep ARN and OSL with more long-haul service than SK would otherwise provide them. But that doesn't mean SK is going to double down on MIA-bound ARN and OSL capacity anytime soon and do so for any longer-term purpose. CPH is the center of SK's world, and it shows with the MIA-bound service too.
#63
Join Date: Mar 2016
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Was last year. But let's say the benchmark is this month in this year, not last year.
SAS is increasingly the CPH-first-airline with ARN and OSL being to SK what MSP is to DL. CPH is SK's version of DL's JFK, ATL, SEA and LAX rolled up into one.
At least the A321LRs should help SK to keep ARN and OSL with more long-haul service than SK would otherwise provide them. But that doesn't mean SK is going to double down on MIA-bound ARN and OSL capacity anytime soon and do so for any longer-term purpose. CPH is the center of SK's world, and it shows with the MIA-bound service too.
SAS is increasingly the CPH-first-airline with ARN and OSL being to SK what MSP is to DL. CPH is SK's version of DL's JFK, ATL, SEA and LAX rolled up into one.
At least the A321LRs should help SK to keep ARN and OSL with more long-haul service than SK would otherwise provide them. But that doesn't mean SK is going to double down on MIA-bound ARN and OSL capacity anytime soon and do so for any longer-term purpose. CPH is the center of SK's world, and it shows with the MIA-bound service too.
ARN and OSL have gotten a bump in long haul within the last 10 years, at a time where CPH raised their fees more than OSL and ARN. Now it's going the other way where SE is adding taxes, the NO government have sold their shares in SK, and both OSL and ARN are raising their fees more than CPH. So to me it's natural that SK moves long haul to CPH, as this airport is better positiones for TATL flights, specially if you connect from Europa.
#65
Join Date: Oct 2011
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Due to changes in seasons, you need to compare with the same month the year before. Anything else will be comparing apples to bananas. Beside that. CPH has always been the main hub for SK long haul. I can still remember the time when there were no SK long haul flights out of ARN and OSL at all.
ARN and OSL have gotten a bump in long haul within the last 10 years, at a time where CPH raised their fees more than OSL and ARN. Now it's going the other way where SE is adding taxes, the NO government have sold their shares in SK, and both OSL and ARN are raising their fees more than CPH. So to me it's natural that SK moves long haul to CPH, as this airport is better positiones for TATL flights, specially if you connect from Europa.
ARN and OSL have gotten a bump in long haul within the last 10 years, at a time where CPH raised their fees more than OSL and ARN. Now it's going the other way where SE is adding taxes, the NO government have sold their shares in SK, and both OSL and ARN are raising their fees more than CPH. So to me it's natural that SK moves long haul to CPH, as this airport is better positiones for TATL flights, specially if you connect from Europa.
#66
Join Date: Feb 2014
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#67
Join Date: Feb 2010
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SAS is a tiny airline and they can’t support three long haul hubs to start off with. If a long haul flight is to survive it needs sufficient O&D as well as good feed at least in one end. SAS’ connectivity ex OSL and ARN is terrible unless you have a domestic connection. Moscow, St Petersburg, the Baltics, the UK and northern continental Europe are natural feeder areas for SAS but what sort of connections do they offer for their longhaul flights? Apart from London, there are no flights arriving in time to catch EWR or MIA without staying overnight.
#68
Join Date: May 2008
Location: ARN
Posts: 3,467
But other carriers are filling it: Air China, China Eastern, Emirates, Qatar, Ethiopian, Air India, Singapore, All Nippon, Icelandair, United, plus lots of passengers on connecting flights via HEL, AMS, CDG, FRA, ZRH, LHR, IST and others.
#69
Join Date: Mar 2016
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Almost all those airlines have been in ARN for years, and all the connecting airports have connections to CPH too. All in all, ARN have totally lost long haul routes over the last couple of years. There has been more airlines moving out of ARN than comming in, and those in ARN have reduced their frequency and destinations more than they have increased it.
#70
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The point remains that the flag carrier should be able to take on more of that demand than those foreign airlines. With an average of 7-9+ flights each feeding into longhaul in AMS, FRA, LHR, ZRH, IST etc in addition to the mentioned carriers, there are a few obvious routes that should work if the product, pricing and service align with the customer demand.
#71
Join Date: Mar 2016
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The point remains that the flag carrier should be able to take on more of that demand than those foreign airlines. With an average of 7-9+ flights each feeding into longhaul in AMS, FRA, LHR, ZRH, IST etc in addition to the mentioned carriers, there are a few obvious routes that should work if the product, pricing and service align with the customer demand.
The whole point is there are not a large enough demand for having more long haul routes in ARN. Being in the middle between HEL and CPH does not do any good for neither ARN nor OSL.
#72
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The ME3 and the *A/ST/OW cartels have consistently and brutally attacked the Nordic market with super low premium fares both to Asia as well as S./N. America. SAS is doing the same in the home markets of AF-KL, LH and BA. Which means that SAS' yield is probably in the dumps because they still fly around with gas guzzling A343, have high crew costs and just spend a lot of cash refurbishing the interiors.
#73
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In simplistic terms I've never understood why SAS does not route long haul eastbound from ARN and westbound from CPH or OSL depending on which has the biggest home market. If I were ARN based and going east, returning to CPH would be a big no and I would choose another airline and if I wanted a local connection I would choose AY. Sweden is the biggest single market of the Scandinavian countries and yet nothing operates from there and SAS have failed to exploit it.
#74
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In simplistic terms I've never understood why SAS does not route long haul eastbound from ARN and westbound from CPH or OSL depending on which has the biggest home market. If I were ARN based and going east, returning to CPH would be a big no and I would choose another airline and if I wanted a local connection I would choose AY. Sweden is the biggest single market of the Scandinavian countries and yet nothing operates from there and SAS have failed to exploit it.
#75
Join Date: Feb 2014
Programs: SK Pandion, BA Silver
Posts: 187
- Airlines feeding their global network. Not a business SAS could meaningfully replace by flying to Dubai/Qatar/Singapore.
- no US carriers flying anywhere SAS is not flying. Not a single US carrier has a flight to a large hub (other than United’s flight to Stockholm). Not a single west coast flight. If it is such a good business case why is SAS moving the flight and nobody filling it?
- Iceland-air has a business model based on fuel savings. They have one narrow-body departure daily. Hardly a meaningful comparison.
- Carriers with local regional network which it is very difficult for SAS to tap in to (Singapore, Thai, Ethiopian)
- some carriers with significantly lower staff costs having a few weekly departures (China eastern, Thai, Ethiopian etc).
- A couple of carriers mainly based in immigrant demand (PIA, IranAir).
- Ana to try. Maybe it works. Let’s see.
The bottom line is that there are not many examples of routes that SAS could fly being served by others. The Tokyo route may of course be one.
The data points would indicate it is difficult in Stockholm. Airlines are closing routes. This has been true for Norwegian (all routes), SAS (Hong Kong, LA), Delta (Atlanta) etc.
Needless to say you are right that demand will be served through hubs if direct routes are not profitable. That however does not make a direct route a viable alternative. The fact that Singapore, which you mention goes through Moscow is an interesting indication that a direct route is not viable.