Rickard Gustafson, CEO of SAS. Photo: Bertil Ericson Enevåg / TT
The airline SAS managed to improve earnings significantly in the fiscal first quarter, which covers November to January. Operating profit was nearly half a billion higher than in the corresponding quarter a year earlier.
But it was still a continued loss and net income for the period ended on -246 million. And then, SAS has nonetheless had a powerful driving force of the fuel costs decreased by nearly SEK 800 million as a result of falling oil prices.
It helps to Rickard Gustafson, CEO of SAS, now warns that the company must continue to save .
– the lower price of fuel provides only a temporary effect. Eventually it will go up and so we must work with our long-term effectiveness, says Rickard Gustafson.
In 2016 , he expects that the capacity increases rapidly when several airlines deposit more and the larger plan. Overall, this is a rise of 5-7 per cent and where SAS expects that the company’s own traffic increases by 10 percent.
Above all it’s about SAS long-haul traffic with flights to the USA and Asia is expected to increase sharply in year, by 25 percent. Counting off the part, it is about an almost negligible rise for SAS.
– In Europe, the low-cost companies that account for growth. The tone in the market is by Ryanair, easyJet, Norwegian and others and to face competition on the part of the market, we need to change SAS basically.
– Some others as Lufthansa and Air France are trying to meet the competition by to form their own low-cost airlines. But SAS is too small to cope with it and have two production platforms, says Rickard Gustafson.
Is it because it is tough in Europe you invest so much on long-haul flights?
– the long-distance market, we see that there is a growth and when we open a new destination, it will also provide a new market. Now we, for example, will soon direct flights from Stockholm to Los Angeles.
You invest a lot in the United States. There will be no new long-haul destinations east?
– We are looking at destinations in the northern hemisphere where there is a great demand to fly directly from Scandinavia, where we do not need to fly in people from the rest of Europe to fill the field. It becomes more destinations to the east and we are looking at locations in China and in South Korea.
SAS is the moment to expand its long-haul fleet with new aircraft. In the last quarter it has gone well to fill the plan more expensive business class but significantly slower with the cheaper economy class.
Why did you have a hard time with what you call the SAS Go?
– it is always a bit difficult to reach out with the new as you expand. But now we have to get better at marketing and setting prices for SAS Go.
– The work is already underway. But it is a difficult craft to find the right combination of quality and price, and where we must simply become sharper.
In plain language this means that SAS must pull down prices in economy for to meet the competition. In the long-haul flight, this includes about Norwegian and Finnair but even if an alliance partner Lufthansa.
SAS has recently been involved in yet another conflict. This time it was Flybe, flying smaller planes on behalf of SAS, which was not agreed with the unions for pilots and cabin crew and 68 flights were canceled.
Why are there so many conflicts in aviation ?
– this is an industry that is not yet completed his journey of change and it always creates friction when trying to change in a short time. I regret that there was a conflict that affected our customers but now we’ve got a good contract.
It is 8 March and a lot of talk about gender equality. One in seven people in the SAS management is a woman.
Are you satisfied with your work on gender equality?
– The Board of Directors, we have a good balance and at the Annual General Meeting of today we get a new woman replaces a man. But the management team is not so and that’s a problem.
Why Do not you then?
– I believe in the idea that it should be a good balance between gender, skills and experience. Here we have a whole lot to do but it is also much to be balanced, says Rickard Gustafson.
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