Ryanair opening base in Denmark and Sweden
Luftfart.nu and google translate Ryanair is setting up two new bases in Denmark and Sweden and thus goes directly after the customers that SAS needs in the future. This is how it sounds from Sydbank's equity analyst, Jacob Pedersen, who believes that SAS may need a commercial rethinking of how the company should make money.
From October, Ryanair will set up bases in Billund and Stockholm Arlanda and add a total of 47 new routes from the two bases. Although Ryanair's customer group is basically the leisure travelers, while SAS goes after the business travelers, the news about the bases is bad news for SAS, says Jacob Pedersen, who analyzes aviation based on the stock market for Sydbank.
"The offensive that Ryanair is now launching is a frontal attack on SAS 'home ground. There will be fewer business travelers in the future, and this will hurt the network companies that make a living from them. Ryanair has put the punch in, and it puts maximum pressure on SAS, which has become more dependent on leisure travelers. SAS will need an adjustment of the product and the business, ”says Jacob Pedersen.Sydbank's calculations, there will be 20-25 per cent fewer business travelers in the future, and this will cost SAS revenues of approx. 5-8 billion SEK annually. SAS therefore needs more leisure travelers to make a profit.
“The network companies have the advantage that business travelers will pay more, but corona means that there are fewer business travelers, and then companies like SAS must have leisure travelers at the back. The fewer business travelers are going to make a huge hole. Ryanair can see that, and they are now coming at a pace that leaves no room for the network companies to attract the leisure travelers. ”
Pressure on SAS and Norwegian
According to Jacob Pedersen, SAS has been lucky that Ryanair has not gone for a base in CPH, but when he looks at the 47 routes that Ryanair will fly from Billund and Stockholm, he sees that there are plans for more attacks on SAS .
"It is not only the southern European destinations that Ryanair offers. There are also cities that can be interesting for business travelers, and then you can see that they will challenge SAS in the domestic market in Sweden, ”says Jacob Pedersen, referring to the fact that Ryanair will fly from Arlanda to Malmö and Gothenburg.