SAS had previously planned for 75,000 flights during the period.
The flights that are now canceled thus correspond to approximately 5 percent of these, which Dagens Industri was the first to report on.
- For most of the passengers, there will be no difference other than that they are rebooked for another departure on the same day, says SAS's communications manager Karin Nyman to SVT.
According to SAS, personnel problems are due to the pandemic, as reduced demand led to a downsizing of operations.
This is the main reason why SAS is now canceling a large number of departures, but there is also a problem with delays in deliveries of new aircraft.
Karin Nyman points out that several airlines in Europe are forced to cancel flights during the high summer and that it is a strategic decision on the part of SAS to become less vulnerable to unforeseen events this summer.
- If something happens during this period, there are very few plans to rebook, we do this to avoid big problems this summer.
We are constantly making changes in our traffic program, and just like all other companies, we face challenges after the pandemic, says Karin Nyman.
Tray: Even more flights can be canceled
The pilot union says that they have been warned about staff shortages this summer on several occasions.
According to the pilot union, SAS canceled 500 flights in April due to a lack of pilots.
- Since October, we have pointed out that the resource situation for the summer looks strained.
We saw early on that there were not enough pilots in the company for us to be able to carry out all planned flights, says Martin Lindgren, chairman of the SAS section at the Swedish Pilot Association.
According to the union, SAS has not re-employed pilots to the extent needed after the cuts made during the pandemic.
The union believes that customers now come second when SAS does not employ to a sufficiently large extent.
- The risk is obvious that additional flights will be canceled at short notice this summer, if technical problems, diseases or if the weather is bad.
If enough flights have been canceled now and we have the buffer needed, it remains to be seen, he says.
The text is updated