Air France-KLM to take majority control of Scandinavian airline SAS

Published on 04/07/2025 - 10:39 GMT+2

Air France-KLM said connected Friday that it plans to summation its liking successful Scandinavian hose SAS to 60.5%, up from astir 20% currently.

The further shares will beryllium acquired from Castlelake and Lind Invest, for an magnitude that will beryllium wished by SAS’s financial capacity astatine closing.

The waste is expected to beryllium completed successful nan 2nd half of 2026, taxable to regulatory approval. The European Commission is apt to scrutinise nan merger pinch attraction to guarantee that it doesn’t frighten adjacent competition. The Commission has already shown immoderate guidance to hose consolidation. A merger betwixt Ryanair and Aer Lingus was blocked connected respective occasions, while IAG abandoned plans to return complete Air Europa owed to expectations that nan woody wouldn’t person nan regulatory greenish light.

Despite this, airlines successful Europe proceed to activity consolidation options successful bid to compete pinch overseas rivals, peculiarly from nan US and nan Middle East.

Lufthansa, for example, has precocious taken a liking successful ITA Airways and airBaltic. 

“As world liking successful Scandinavia continues to grow, we judge this consolidation strengthens SAS’ expertise to link Scandinavia pinch nan world — and nan world pinch Scandinavia — by positioning Copenhagen arsenic our world hub for nan region, while continuing to uphold beardown and strategical operations successful some Oslo and Stockholm,” said Anko van der Werff, president and CEO of SAS.

Benjamin Smith, CEO of Air France-KLM, said: “Following their successful restructuring, SAS has delivered awesome performance, and we are assured that nan airline’s imaginable will proceed to turn done deeper integration wrong nan Air France-KLM Group. This cognition would use our customers and each Scandinavians who would bask enhanced connectivity.”

Air France-KLM took an first liking successful SAS successful 2023 arsenic nan struggling Scandinavian hose underwent a two-year restructuring process pursuing its bankruptcy filing.

The Danish authorities besides holds a 26.4% liking successful SAS and will clasp its committee seats if nan waste to nan Franco-Dutch bearer goes through.

SAS has a fleet of 138 aircraft, carried much than 25 cardinal passengers past year, and flies to complete 130 destinations.