“Bromma is a billion-krona waste for the convenience of wealthy people from Skåne”

After the New Year, Anko van der Werff will become chief executive of Air Canada. On Wednesday, he made one of his final public appearances in Sweden at Travel News’ well-attended aviation seminar. The upbeat and relaxed SAS chief spoke candidly about the crisis facing Swedish domestic aviation:

- Sweden is among the three worst countries in Europe in terms of growth in demand since the pandemic, he noted.

- The reasons are primarily travel policies that prohibit flying, working from home with digital meetings, and the environmental debate. In Sweden, the impact is greater than in other countries.

Anko van der Werff noted that customers are flying abroad despite higher ticket prices, but are opting out of domestic flights:

- It is always easier to blame external factors than travel policies, but do not blame SAS or Copenhagen for the crisis. There is a kind of Stockholm psychosis surrounding Copenhagen because people in southern Sweden choose Kastrup.

The SAS chief believes that the collapse in demand for domestic flights has bottomed out and addressed both companies and the responsible minister, Andreas Carlsson:

- If you want domestic aviation to be part of the infrastructure, then use it. But I have seen many large companies whose policies discriminate against flying.

On the issue of emissions, Anko van der Werff made a “realistic assessment”:

- I see three stages. Hydrogen could become an option in 2040. Until then, we may have electric aircraft on short routes for 6–8, perhaps even 20 passengers. But across the Atlantic, no, not in my lifetime. SAF, certainly, but it is too expensive and availability is too limited. It is too risky to invest in SAF without government support.

And on the future of Bromma, the SAS chief was unequivocal:

- It is a waste of money to continue operating Bromma. It costs around SEK 1 billion for the convenience of a few travellers. It is mainly wealthy people from Skåne who fly to Bromma.

- Having two airports splits demand. Of course, London, New York, Tokyo or Shanghai have two airports. But there is no reason why we should pay for Bromma.

Moderator Jan Wifstrand then asked him how Swedish SAS really is without Swedish ownership:

- The state sold its shares, Anko van der Werff noted briefly. But then you could say that Ikea is Dutch. No, forget about ownership, we are here and we want to grow here.