SAS Group's Spanish Subsidiary Spanair has today announced the following: Spanair Announces a Feasibility Plan to Face the Economic Crisis and the Record Fuel Price Increase

SAS Group's Spanish Subsidiary Spanair has today announced the following:
Spanair Announces a Feasibility Plan to Face the Economic Crisis and the Record
Fuel Price Increase

Spanair's Management has announced today a Feasibility Plan to face the current
crisis that the airline industry is going through as a consequence of the high
fuel prices and the decrease of demand. In order to ensure the future
profitability of the Company, the plan implies reduction of capacity and staff.
The Feasibility Plan is based on four strategic pillars: re-dimensioning of the
aircraft capacity, cost reductions, improvement of efficiency and revenue
improvement measures. As a necessary measure to stop the Company losses,
worsened by the record high fuel prices, Spanair will ground an estimated number
of 15 aircraft during September and October. The total earnings effect in 2009
from all the measures is estimated to MEUR 90.
Spanair will thereby cancel 9 unprofitable routes (Madrid-Vienna, Madrid-Munich,
Madrid-Girona, Madrid-San Sebastián, Madrid-Granada, Madrid-Oviedo,
Barcelona-Zurich, Bilbao-Málaga and Bilbao-Jerez) as the present and future
demand does not justify their continuity.   

Following the capacity reduction, Spanair will operate over 80% of its network
and will continue as the second largest operator in the market with 260 daily
flights to 48 destinations.  

“ I am proud to see that in this challenging environment Spanair can lead the
process to normalize capacity in the Spanish market and still maintain its
position as the number one full service airline out of Barcelona, and as the
second largest airline out of Madrid” said Marcus Hedblom, Spanair CEO.

The implementation of the Feasibility Plan, whose main guidelines have been
presented today to all personnel and the Union representatives will also imply
the reduction of approximately 900 full-time positions.

The Company will continue working on the definition of concrete measures
included in this Feasibility Plan to start negotiating with the Union
representatives in order to place it in force during the month of September.
For further information, please contact
Sture Stölen, Phone: (46) 70 997 1451
Adolfo Lázaro, Phone: (34) 971745170 or (34) 690676257
Ana Martín-Pintado, Phone: (34) 971745170 or (34) 618256984