As a result of an investment of $1.2 billion by Air France-KLM Group for a share of 19.9 percent of Scandinavian Airlines — which had filed voluntary petitions under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code of the United States on Tuesday, July 5, 2022 — the airline will leave Star Alliance at the end of the day on Saturday, August 31, 2024 and become a member of the SkyTeam Alliance effective as of Sunday, September 1, 2024.
Scandinavian Airlines to Join SkyTeam Alliance
The EuroBonus membership program of Scandinavian Airlines — which is also known as SAS — will otherwise remain unaffected: points will remain in membership accounts and retain their current expiration date; and elite status and benefits will still be intact. The one major difference is that members of EuroBonus will enjoy the following benefits with most partner airlines of the SkyTeam Alliance instead of the airlines of Star Alliance — such as:
- Extra baggage allowance and priority check-in for EuroBonus Silver members
- Lounge access, fast track, and priority boarding for EuroBonus Gold and Diamond members in addition to an extra baggage allowance and priority check-in
Additional details of the transition will be shared as soon as possible.
With regard to Star Alliance, EuroBonus members will be able to:
- Book Bonus trips on Star Alliance airlines using the Star Alliance Bonus Trip booking tool until Saturday, August 31, 2024 — even if the travel date is after Saturday, August 31, 2024.
- Use valid American Express 2-for-1 vouchers for Star Alliance Bonus trip bookings until Saturday, August 31, 2024.
- Rebook Star Alliance Bonus trips until 24 hours before the departure of the outbound flight, subject to availability, just as today, even if the departure date is from Sunday, September 1, 2024 — but once the trip has started, rebooking the return trip will not be possible.
- Cancel Star Alliance Bonus trips until Saturday, August 31, 2024 and after Sunday, September 1, 2024 just as today, up to 24 hours before the departure of the outbound flight by contacting SAS Customer Service — but once the trip has started, rebooking the return trip will not be possible.
- Claim missing points for flights on Star Alliance airlines that they have completed until Sunday, September 8, 2024 for flights which have concluded by Saturday, August 31, 2024. After Sunday, September 8, 2024, claiming missing points for flights on Star Alliance airlines will no longer be possible. To avoid having to claim missing points, ensure your EuroBonus number has been added to your flight reservation prior to departure.
Scandinavian Airlines will transition from being a member of Star Alliance — of which it was one of the five founding members on Wednesday, May 14, 1997 — to the SkyTeam Alliance, of which Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airways are founding members.
Ways towards building a sustainable future were being sought for the financially troubled airline and some of its subsidiaries during the ongoing bankruptcy process. Air France-KLM Group was declared the winning bidder consortium in its exit financing solicitation process.
Scandinavian Airlines will continue to operate and serve its customers as usual throughout the implementation of the transaction.
Final Boarding Call
This announcement caught many people by surprise for a number of reasons — including the unusual move of the founding member of one airline alliance to leave to become a member of another alliance. It is also bad news to existing investors who have already lost money in the corporation, whose stock will become worthless.
The future was already looking rather bleak for Scandinavian Airlines with the issues that it faced. For example, a labor dispute with its pilots in 2022 was expected to cost approximately $13 million per day — which the airline simply could not afford.
Regardless of the benefits and disadvantages of this deal, its outcome will significantly change the commercial aviation landscape in Europe — starting with the aforementioned switch of membership in airline alliances. How significant that change will be remains to be seen.
Photograph ©2008 by Brian Cohen.
