Air France-KLM on track to become majority shareholder of Scandinavian airline SAS

Perhaps a new arrival at Air France-KLM . The Franco-Dutch airline intends to consolidate its positions in northern Europe and aims to control its Scandinavian competitor Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS), in which it has been a shareholder since 2024. The group announced this Friday, July 4, that it has begun "the process of acquiring a majority stake in the capital" of the Stockholm-based company, of which it is already one of the main shareholders.

"Air France-KLM plans to increase its stake in SAS from its current 19.9% ​​to 60.5 % by acquiring all of the shares held by Castlelake and Lind Invest," the Franco-Dutch group announced. The latter had already acquired a stake in the Scandinavian company, weakened in particular by the Covid-19 epidemic, in the summer of 2024 and had initiated a commercial cooperation between Air France, KLM, and SAS.

An alliance based on expanded code-sharing agreements to offer passengers more destination options, as well as interline marketing that facilitates travel for customers who need to use multiple carriers to reach their final destination. This cooperation was strengthened by SAS's entry into the SkyTeam alliance, which brings together 18 airlines worldwide.

Air France-KLM had made no secret of its intentions to "increase its stake so as to become a controlling shareholder after a minimum of two years. " "Subject to obtaining the required regulatory approvals and the lifting of the conditions precedent, the objective is to finalize the transaction in the second half of 2026," commented the group, for which this project "reflects the success of the restructuring of SAS and the positive results of the commercial cooperation initiated in 2024."

Air France-KLM is targeting "all the shares held by Castlelake and Lind Invest, bringing its own stake in SAS to 60.5 %," while the Danish government would retain 26.4% of the shares and its seats on the board of directors, the airline said.

The value of the proposed investment, however, has not yet been detailed. It would be determined "at the time of finalization of the transaction, based on SAS's latest financial performance – including EBITDA [gross operating profit, editor's note] and net debt. This transaction would be aligned with the group's medium-term financial outlook," Air France-KLM explained.

When it acquired a stake last year, Air France-KLM announced that it had completed the acquisition of its 19.9% ​​stake for $144.5 million. If the acquisition of this majority stake is successful, SAS would become a subsidiary of the group, which is counting on "synergies through integration across all areas of activity, including loyalty programs, and beyond just commercial functions."

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The Franco-Dutch group would hold the majority of seats on the airline's board of directors. Air France CEO Benjamin Smith said he was "looking forward to welcoming SAS as a full member of the Air France-KLM family." "SAS is performing excellently following its successful restructuring, and we are confident that its potential will continue to grow through further integration within the group," the company director added.

SAS generated revenue of €4.1 billion in 2024, carrying some 25 million passengers over the period. Air France-KLM, meanwhile, generated revenue of €31.5 billion and carried some 98 million passengers, but saw these profits halve compared to 2023.