Trendier service onboard with Scandinavian Direct

Trendier service onboard with Scandinavian Direct In conjunction with its launch of Scandinavian Direct, SAS is changing its onboard service. There will be only one travel class and all passengers will enjoy the same level of service. The change in the onboard service concept, like other changes, is mainly based on customer surveys carried out by SAS. "Our customer surveys clearly show that customers want a change especially in short-haul flights. They want a simplified product for a lower price," says Ulf Ingnäs, Director Product Management Inflight at SAS Airline. "Frequent flyers who travel shorter distances want their travel to be as convenient as possible. They have indicated that they want a smarter, more efficient product. "Taking customer preferences and SAS's own cost-cutting requirements as our guidelines, we developed a new concept for onboard service that is geared toward shorter flights. The concept will initially be launched on intra-Scandinavian flights as well as on all domestic fights." Breakfast important The Scandinavian Direct service concept varies with the duration of the flight. A key element of the concept is breakfast, which is served on all flights until 9:30 a.m. "Flight length determines what we can serve onboard. On a flight that is 50 minutes or shorter, we have a 12-15-minute window in which to serve a meal. We want passengers on such flights to be able to have their breakfast without feeling rushed," says Ulf Ingnäs. Simplicity and variation The new concept is divided into two periods - breakfast, and all other times during the day and night. The current service concept is divided into five periods. SAS is now focusing instead on two concepts that offer greater inherent variation. "Our frequent flyers often fly regularly at the same time and would prefer us to vary our range rather than offer different concepts throughout the day and night," Ulf Ingnäs explains. "Our menus are inspired by fast-food trends throughout the world. We will have five different themes - Asian, Scandinavian, Mediterranean, 'fusion,' and vegetarian. Based on these themes, we will create snacks, sandwiches and wraps. Beverages served with meals include juice, water, coffee and tea. Beer and wine are available on request. This decision is also motivated by customer surveys and by the extremely small serving window available on short flights. Most business travelers want fewer disturbances during their flight. Friday special On Friday afternoons after 4:00 p.m., Scandinavian Direct will provide a feature offering called the "Friday Night Special." "This might be, for example, 'American Friday,' with hamburgers; 'Italian Friday,' with pizza slices, or 'Danish Friday,' with 'pølse' sausages, bread and beer," Ulf Ingnäs explains. For further information, please contact: Ulf Ingnäs, Director Product Management Inflight, SAS Airline, Tel: +46 8 797 17 08 or +46 709 97 17 08. SAS CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/03/20/20020320BIT00320/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/03/20/20020320BIT00320/wkr0002.pdf