SAS receives all court approvals necessary to continue operating its business

SAS AB (SAS) has received approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York for all of its “First Day” motions as part of the company’s voluntary chapter 11 process in the U.S.

The approvals granted by the court confirm that SAS is authorised to continue to operate its business in the ordinary course throughout the chapter 11 process in accordance with the court’s orders.

The court specifically authorised SAS to, among other things, continue to: pay all employee wages and benefits; operate the airline in the ordinary course; honour existing customer programmes, including the EuroBonus loyalty programme; honour various pre-petition obligations owed to certain of its critical travel agency partners, vendors and suppliers; pay vendors and suppliers in full under normal terms for goods received and services provided on or after July 5, 2022 and to pay all taxes, insurance and other regulatory fees in the ordinary course.

Anko van der Werff, President and Chief Executive Officer of SAS, said, “These court approvals confirm that our operations will continue as usual as we begin our restructuring process in the U.S. We remain focused on providing the service our customers are used to, while accelerating our efforts to implement key elements of our comprehensive business transformation plan, SAS FORWARD. Ultimately, our plan is about improving our financial position and continuing our more than 75-year legacy as Scandinavia’s leading airline.”