Things are moving much more rapidly for SAS, Scandinavian Airlines, as the carrier is out of the woods of chapter 11 bankruptcy. It is once again moving ambitiously by placing its largest ever order of Airbus wide body aircraft, specifically the Airbus A330-900.
In this post:
- SAS’ Largest Ever Airbus Wide Body Order
- The Likely SAS Airbus A330-900 Configuration
- The Fuel Efficient A330-300 Replacement
- SAS’ Ambition of Becoming the Northern European Connector
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SAS’ Largest Ever Airbus Wide Body Order
The order is a juicy one for Airbus. SAS, Scandinavian Airlines, has put on order 18 Airbus A330neo. Specifically it has ordered the larger variant of the aircraft, the A330-900.
Additionally to the 18 firm orders the airline has also sourced additional Airbus A330ceo which will help bridge the demand gap until the brand new planes are produced and delivered.
The total number of aircraft Scandinavian Airlines is looking to introduce into its fleet is 40.
There isn’t an official timeline on the delivery of such aircraft, however, I would imagine that its completion must be at least a few years out. That’s my guess taking into account the fact that the airline has also sourced additional A330ceo and that generally speaking wide body aircraft output from OEMs is slow, much slower than narrow bodies.
I’d like to wrap up this section pointing something out. We know the number of firm orders placed for A330neo aircraft, however, there’s no clue regarding possible options and how many A330ceo the airline is sourcing.
It looks like there is an intentionality in keeping that rather foggy so to keep some flexibility without having publicly committed to anything beyond those firm 18 A330neo.
The Likely SAS Airbus A330-900 Configuration
We don’t have much information on the aircraft interior configuration either. To me the most likely setup the aircraft will have is 3-class featuring: Business, Premium Economy and Economy Class. In my mind it’ll be something very close to what is fitted on the A350-900 which features:
| Class | Seats | Layout |
|---|---|---|
| Business Class | 40 | 1-2-1 |
| Premium Economy | 32 | 2-3-2 |
| Economy Class | 228 | 3-3-3 |
Economy class will differ almost certainly in the seat layout. The standard A330 economy class configuration is 2-4-2 and the cabin isn’t compatible in most cases with a 3-3-3.
The Fuel Efficient A330-300 Replacement
The role the A330-900 will have in the SAS fleet is easy to spot. The airliner will be the natural replacement for the much older Airbus A330-300 of which Scandinavian has 8.
The order placed will not only replace those older 8 planes but also expand and enhance the carrier’s long haul capable fleet.
It’s also fairly easy to understand why SAS chose the A330-900 over ordering more A350-900s. By continuing to operate A330 family planes there won’t be any need to re-train pilots. Those flying the A330-300 fleet will transition to the new variant without having get a new type rating.
Then there’s the efficiency gains which are what really makes the switch appealing to the airline, despite the hefty price tag and investment.
The Airbus A330-900 unlocks savings of up to 25% in fuel burn compared to older generation similarly sized planes. Not only it comes with greater capacity and range than the A330-300 it will replace.
All of that makes the A330-900 much more akin to the A350-900 than the older A330 variant it will be replacing.
Fueling SAS’ Ambition of Becoming the Northern European Connector
In recent interviews the airline has stated time and time again that its medium term goal is to become a Northern European connector for passengers traveling long haul.
It has made a choice in terms of hub, making Copenhagen the focus of most of its long haul operations. Oslo and Stockholm will continue to have some long haul connectivity but Copenhagen will dominate the majority of these operations.
That is also in line with how the governments of the Scandinavian countries contributed in the restructuring of the national carrier.
To become competitive at scale there is an undeniable necessity to have more aircraft available to fly the highly profitable long haul sectors.