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Scandinavian Airlines System

Also known as: SAS
Written and fact-checked byThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
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Scandinavian Airlines System
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Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A330-343.
John Paul Solis
Date:
1951 - present
Headquarters:
Stockholm
Recent News
(Reuters)Airline SAS receives US court approval for bankruptcy restructuring
(ABC News (U.S.))Scandinavian Airlines medevac plane lands in Malaysian island where Norwegian king is hospitalized

Scandinavian Airlines System, major international air travel company, formed by three national Scandinavian air carriers.

Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) was established in 1946 through a consortium agreement between three Scandinavian airlines—Det Danske Luftfartselskab, a Danish airline; Den Norske Luftfartselskap, a Norwegian air carrier; and Svensk Interkontinental Lufttrafik AB, a Swedish airline. The new airline’s first intercontinental commercial flight, between Stockholm and New York, took place that same year. The three individual carriers handed over all operations to SAS by 1951. In the early 21st century SAS split into four separate carriers, one based in each of the three founding countries and another for international flights; all continued to use the SAS name. Today the SAS Group operates scheduled passenger, freight, and mail flights between more than 100 cities around the world.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.