SAS cancels 1,700 flights in September and October

Scandinavia's SAS airline has cancelled 1,700 flights in September and October as a result of continuing staffing problems, the Danish travel trade newspaper Check-in has reported.

Published: 19 August 2022 08:52 CEST

SAS cancels 1,700 flights in September and October

A SAS plane approaches Arlanda airport in Sweden. Photo: Jonathan NACKSTRAND/AFP

According to the newspaper, 1,200 departures planned for September have been cancelled, as have around 500 planned departures for October.

Domestic flights in the Scandinavian region and international flights within Europe are both affected, with the airline blaming the after effects of the 15-day pilot strike it suffered in July.

“We are not seeing reduced demand – quite the opposite,” Alexandra Lindgren Kaoukji, the head of press for SAS in Danmark, told the newspaper. “But when it comes to personnel, the strike has affected staffing in the coming months.”

She said there was also pressure from people taking late holidays. “But it’s also the late delivery of planes to SAS Link, which is affecting capacity.”

More than 3,700 flights where cancelled and 380,000 passengers where affected by the 15-day SAS pilots’ strike in July.

The strike, which cost the airline between €9m and €12m a day, was ended on July 19th, after which it took several days to get flights back to normal.