SAS
has undergone massive changes recently, all designed to make it more competitive, agile, stronger, and better performing. Having been a founding member of Star Alliance, the carrier joined SkyTeam on September 1. It came as it gained 19.9% equity from Air France-KLM and exited bankruptcy protection and Swedish reorganization.

SAS’s first SkyTeam-driven route was Copenhagen-Atlanta in June 2024, while Oslo-New York JFK and Copenhagen-Seattle—all based on feeding Delta Air Lines
—have been announced. They are part of “big changes” to its North American network, which has only just started. More moves are afoot, including the end of its non-core Stockholm-Toronto service, which was its second-longest Airbus A321LR route by distance and time. It seems the freed-up frame will be used to increase Copenhagen-Toronto flights to daily.

Gone: Stockholm to Toronto

The 3,419 nautical mile (6,331 km) Star Alliance-driven route is relatively new to SAS’s route map. It started in June 2022 and only operated summer seasonally after that.

It ran three times weekly, although up to four weekly at times. (SAS last flew to Toronto 30+ years ago.) Air Canada launched the route in June 2024, the same month that Montreal-Stockholm took off, although the latter has since ended.

SAS’s service has been exclusively operated by the low-capacity, relatively low-weight, 157-seat A321LR, which further helps to increase range. Each of its three LRs (it does not expect to have more) has 22 fully flat business seats, 12 in premium economy, and 123 in economy.

The last flight took 7h 54m

The last Stockhom-Toronto flight was on September 14, 2024; it finished a month and a half earlier than in prior years. Flightradar24 shows that the last leg to Canada, which had headwinds, took 7h 52m (it was blocked at 8h 45m). The plan was for it to return on April 1, 2025, soon after SAS, like other northern airlines, will switch to summer schedules. However, all flights have been removed from sale.

SAS’s initial US/Canada routes: July 2025

As you’ll appreciate, things will undoubtedly change, with more SkyTeam-driven routes and fewer related to Star Alliance. Examining its plan thus far is a bit problematic, especially as there’s a long way to go until next summer.

SAS North American route network as of September 19

Image: GCMap

The following list is highly likely to change.

As of September 19, it plans these routes. It’s too simplistic to say a route is Star-based, as there is often a lot more demand, although this is clearer for some destinations than others. Copenhagen-Toronto, for example, will rise from four times weekly to daily next summer. But what will happen to its remaining Newark routes? Will it continue to fly to Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington Dulles? Quite possibly.

  • Copenhagen-Atlanta: daily A330-300
  • Copenhagen-Boston: daily A350-900
  • Copenhagen-Chicago O’Hare: six times weekly A330-300 (Star)
  • Copenhagen-Los Angeles: daily A350-900
  • Copenhagen-Newark: daily A330-300 (Star)
  • Copenhagen-New York JFK: 13 weekly A321LR
  • Copenhagen-San Francisco: daily A330-300 (Star)
  • Copenhagen-Seattle: five weekly A350-900
  • Copenhagen-Toronto: daily A321LR (Star); up from the previously planned four times weekly
  • Copenhagen-Washington Dulles: six times weekly A330-300 (Star)
  • Oslo-New York JFK: daily A321LR
  • Oslo-Newark: daily A330-300 (Star)
  • Stockholm-Newark: daily A330-300 (Star)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *