There’s never a bad time to go to Paris, and Air France agrees, giving away a pair of roundtrip flights and a wardrobe incroyable so travelers can live their best French lives.
28.08.2024 - 16:10 / skift.com / Gordon Smith
The Air France-KLM Group has officially become a shareholder in SAS Scandinavian Airlines. The agreement marks the conclusion of one of the year’s biggest airline deals and heralds the latest phase of consolidation in the European airline industry.
On Wednesday, the Franco-Dutch firm formally concluded its acquisition of a 19.9% shareholding in SAS. Despite being a non-controlling stake, the company will make its presence felt as soon as Sunday. In a market filing, Air France-KLM said “extensive commercial cooperation” will start from September 1.
Air France-KLM joined a consortium including Castlelake, Lind Invest, and the government of Denmark in the nearly $1.2 billion deal. The purchase forms a key part of SAS’s financial restructuring that helped salvage the Scandinavian carrier from extreme financial distress. With so many moving parts in the mix, here are three key areas to watch in the coming weeks:
With Air France-KLM a cornerstone of the SkyTeam group of airlines, and SAS a founding member of rival Star Alliance – something had to give. On September 1, SAS will formally join SkyTeam. This major shift has implications across multiple areas, but one of the biggest is loyalty programs.
SAS says reciprocal frequent flyer benefits will start on September 1. The agreements cover Air France-KLM’s Flying Blue platform and SAS’ EuroBonus program. Put simply, members should be able to ‘earn and burn’ points more easily within the new partner airlines. September 1 also marks the switch date for eligible EuroBonus members to use SkyTeam benefits including SkyPriority status at airports and global lounge access.
Notably, this means regular flyers with Star Alliance, such as United Airlines, will no longer enjoy the same perks when traveling with SAS.
This is a blow to Star Alliance’s footprint in northern Europe, but Scandinavia won’t become a black hole for the organization. As the world’s biggest airline group, Star has 17 other members offering nonstop flights to the region. This includes major players such as Air Canada, Air India, Lufthansa, and Turkish Airlines.
In a slightly cryptic statement, the organization also teased possible expansion to compensate for the loss of SAS, noting that members “may bring additional service to Scandinavia” in the future. For a full list of members check out this Star Alliance Skift explainer.
According to the new partners, headline developments include “far-reaching interline and codeshare agreements” to improve connections between airport hubs.
Air France has its primary base at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport, while KLM’s global network is focused around Amsterdam Schiphol. As the flag carrier of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, SAS currently operates a
There’s never a bad time to go to Paris, and Air France agrees, giving away a pair of roundtrip flights and a wardrobe incroyable so travelers can live their best French lives.
Ahead of Labor Day, Capital One launched a very lucrative Air France-KLM transfer bonus. From now through Sunday, Sept. 29, when you transfer your Capital One miles to Air France-KLM Flying Blue, you'll receive 20% bonus miles. Therefore, when you transfer 1,000 Capital One miles, you'll get 1,200 Flying Blue miles, making this offer a 1:1.2 ratio.
One of the best travel credit cards has an increased sign-up bonus worth nearly $1,000 for flights, hotels, and more — but it’s ending in just a few days.
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