Skift Take
The fallout from SAS leaving the Star Alliance group of airlines will be felt far beyond Scandinavia, with SkyTeam partners such as Delta's SkyMiles program due to be the biggest winners.
Late last year, SAS said it would leave the Star Alliance group of airlines - but it didn’t say exactly when or how.
Things are now much clearer. Yesterday it was confirmed that August 31 will be the Scandinavian carrier’s last day in the club. The announcement marks the first time one of the organization’s five founding members has left the alliance since it was established in 1997.
With a potential knock-on impact for United and Delta passengers traveling to Europe and beyond, we answer some of the big questions:
Why is SAS Leaving the Star Alliance?Given that SAS is the flag carrier for Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a near-certain moneymaker. Au contraire. Despite serving some of the wealthiest countries in Europe, the airline found itself in deep financial trouble.
This ultimately resulted i