A ride with the valkyries
Written: May 13 '01 (Updated Oct 08 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Flying with Scandinavian is guaranteed to give you peace of mind.
Cons: Scandinavian functionalism may be less extravagant than what some air travellers have become used to.
The Bottom Line: If you have the option to travel SAS on a destination, try it out for its Scandinavian approach emphasising unpretentious functionalism, environmentalism, equality and professionalism.
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| knilaus's Full Review: SAS Scandinavian Airlines |
The valkyries in old Norse legend were the female warrior angels of Valhalla, who combed deserted battlefields to bring back the souls of brave, deceased viking warriors to Asgard, where they would be seated at the table of Wotan to drink, dine, sing and be merry ever after.
I like to compare the services of Scandinavian Airlines to those of the valkyries: The weary, viking business traveller, who feels exhausted after a long and stressful trip abroad is able to finally find peace of mind when he is taken care of by the friendly, valkyrian flight attendants of SAS in order that he may be brought safely back to "Valhalla."
Personal predispositions
Now before I entice you any further for SAS, let me describe to you my own circumstances, which include a handful of perfectly rational arguments why I typically choose SAS over the alternatives. Some of these reasons may not apply to you:
My experience with air travel on a modestly frequent basis dates back some four years now. Before then, I flew only infrequently and did thus not have a proper basis for comparison. I have flown SAS to European destinations as both a business traveller and a student. Apart from SAS I have used KLM, SwissAir and British Airways, and to be perfectly honest, there is really not much to set the carriers apart from each other. They all have to operate within certain constraints of safety requirements, price competition and technological development, which means that it is really only on the fine points that they are able to differentiate themselves from each other.
Most pairs of destinations within Europe have only two brand name carriers competing: The national carriers of the respective countries. I typically choose the carrier that speaks my language if not inhibited by a limited availability of departures.
An alternative could be to go for a discount carrier (such as easyjet, Go!, Virgin or RyanAir) offering only basic services and typically to a minor, remote airport of the city in question. However, as I am a student and thus able to travel under the ISIC discount scheme, I am usually able to achieve equally low rates for the major brand carriers.
And finally I should mention that I am a participant in the SAS EuroBonus frequent flyer scheme, which allows me to accumulate miles (or "points") to spend on additional air travel, but which of course also biases me in favour of flying SAS over any possible alternatives.
The Scandinavian approach to flying
Let me detail to you my impression of how the Scandinavian approach manifests itself in flying with SAS. Hopefully, this will help you align your expectations better to what is on offer from SAS.
Functionalism
Probably, the most defining characteristic of SAS is their unpretentious functionalism. Do not expect to find anything wildly fanciful, radically irrational or hysterically trendy among the services that this airline offers. As noted by other reviewers their "Scandinavian" lounges exhibit this trait in the most elegant way: Where other lounges choose to resemble either a British gentleman's private study or the lobby of a business hotel, SAS have chosen the Scandinavian living room as their model. The lounge in Copenhagen are very light and elegant. And I think it does a far better job at making you feel at home than any other lounge I have visited. See the link section for pictures.
Probably, the same philosophy lies behind SAS' decision to keep relatively old aircraft such as the DC-9 flying for such a long time. If it works and it is safe, then why should customers pay more just so the airline company can sport off the latest, prestigious aircraft? Even so, the DC-9 is to be decommissioned in 2002, when the last of the newly ordered Boeing 767-300 enter service.
Environmental concerns
We all know that flying is probably not among the most environmentally friendly activities that one may undertake. However, flying SAS can at least give you the consolation that this carrier takes the problem seriously. The 767-300's mentioned in the above were the first in the world to be delivered with new DAC engines reducing emissions and noise levels far below the standards expected to be required in the future. Furthermore, all meals are delivered in a specially designed cardboard case, which reduces material consumption to as little material as possible.
SAS has published an annual environmental report to document that they are consciously planning to reduce the impact on the environment of their operations.
Punctuality and professional pride
Although I do not fly frequently enough to usefully testify to this, it is my impression that SAS arrivals are generally on time. My plane has never been late in arriving, but this may also be due to the fact that I only fly shorter trips of 2 - 3 hours durations.
Egalitarian and Flexible
Another thing that I like about flying SAS is that I generally get the impression that the staff are independent minded, empowered and capable to take decisions on their own. I feel that SAS employees are very aware of the significant impact that small deviations from standard procedures can have on customers' perception of the journey. This leads them to exercise the flexibility that can make the operations flow more smoothly in day-to-day practice. I will in the following provide you with some small examples that illustrate how this is experienced by the ordinary passenger.
Some positive experiences
From my previous SAS travels as a business class customer I had developed a liking for consuming Champagne in-flight: On one return journey after a particularly successful business trip I managed to persuade my flight attendant to serve me four small bottles of champagne. I do not know why, but this drink has an almost magical effect on you when travelling at 30,000 feet. Anyway, when I travelled to London a year ago in cabin class to commence my studies over here, I asked again if I could have champagne for my diner. The flight attendant courteously informed me that champagne was only available free of charge to customers travelling business class, but that I could buy a bottle for 7 USD. I politely declined and asked for a Gin & Tonic instead, which I got. Later during the journey, however, she came back to my seat with a sly smile and discretely handed me the bottle of champagne that I had asked for. Now that was service!
On the same journey, of course I had brought along quite a lot of luggage. When you must live in another country for twelve months or longer, you tend to fill your bags. I had weighed my bags before leaving for the airport, and my two bags weighed in at around 26 kilos - 6 kilos above my maximum baggage allowance. I was thus prepared to pay a surcharge for the extra weight when checking in. However, the lady at the check-in desk never even blinked, when I checked in the two bags. Instead she focused on fulfilling my desire for a seat as far back in the plane as possible. I ended up sitting at an emergency exit, which meant extra legroom. Nice!
On other occasions I have had the misfortune to check in very late for my departure. For example, I went by train to Stansted airport, when the trains were heavily delayed because of some crashes that had occurred recently. My train ended up being delayed by almost an hour, which meant that I arrived at the airport only 15 minutes before departure. Nevertheless, SAS personnel were kind enough to check me in and let me carry my luggage on board the airplane. This has happened to me on more than one occasion, and each time I have been positively surprised by the flexibility that SAS staff exercise. In fact, I have yet to have a bad experience travelling SAS.
I hope the above has clarified why I think that travelling SAS is sure to give you peace of mind. Both when it comes to the broader issues such as safety and environment, and when you look at the service provided by flight attendants and ground crew is there reason for admiration. While it is true that you cannot expect luxury along the lines of some carriers' Business Class-service, I feel that this is well in line with the general Scandinavian ethos of egalitarianism.
Links
Pictures from the Scandinavian Lounges
http://www.scandinavian.net/company/newsfacts/scandinavian/lounges.asp
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
knilaus
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Member: Kristoffer Nilaus Olsen
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
Reviews written: 22
Trusted by: 34 members
About Me:
Just out of temporal stasis.
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