SAS Commuter acquires DASH 8 for 2.5 billion swedish kronor

SAS COMMUTER ACQUIRES DASH 8 FOR 2.5 BILLION SWEDISH KRONOR SAS Commuter has ordered 15 Bombardier Dash 8-400 turboprop aircraft. The order, including spare parts, amounts to 2.5 billion Swedish kronor. SAS Commuter has also taken options for another 18 aircraft. The Dash 8- 400 aircraft will be delivered to SAS between July 1999 and December 2000. In SAS Commuter's configuration the Dash 8-400 will seat 72 passengers in European traffic and 76 passengers on domestic routes. Initially, SAS Commuter will use the aircraft on its regional route network in northern Europe, with Copenhagen and Stockholm as a home base. The aircraft will also be used on domestic services in Sweden. At a later stage, the Dash 8-400 may also be deployed in Norway. " For quite some time we have been looking for a turboprop aircraft in the 70-seat range which can fill the capacity gap between our current Fokker 50s and Saab 2000s, which seat approximately 50 people, and the 100-seat Boeing 737-600 which will enter service with SAS late next year. Jet aircraft are not a viable economic alternative on the routes in question. The Dash 8-400 meets our requirements for comfort, low cabin noise level, capacity, speed, environmental aspects, operating costs and purchase price", said Ole Pedersen, President of SAS Commuter. The Dash 8-400 belongs to a new generation of turboprop aircraft. The aircraft is still in the construction phase and the first flight is scheduled for December this year. It will be certified by the authorities in March next year. The Dash 8-400's powerful engines give the aircraft a maximum speed of 648 km/hr or 392/mph. It has a nonstop range Stockholm-Berlin, or 1,000 kilometers, with a full load. The passengers will be seated four abreast in the spacious cabin. In international service the SAS Commuter Dash 8-400 will have a 2-class configuration (EuroClass and tourist class), and single-class configuration on domestic flights. The crew will consist of two pilots and two cabin attendants. SAS Commuter has signed a flexible contract with the Toronto-based Bombardier Regional Aircraft Division, giving the airline the possibility of switching some of the orders for the smaller, 50-seat Dash 8-300 if it so wishes. SAS Commuter is a production company which conducts air transport on behalf of SAS in Scandinavia and northern Europe. SAS CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS For further information: Ole Pedersen, President, SAS Commuter, tel. +45-40 45 08 48 Kurt Kühne, Vice President, Fleet Development, SAS, tel. +46-8-797.2551 ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/07/29/20030729BIT00090/wkr0001.DOC http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/07/29/20030729BIT00090/wkr0002.pdf