SAS pilots call a strike that grounds flights after talks break down
VIDEO SHOWS: PASSENGERS AT AIRPORT, DEPARTURE BOARDS, PASSENGERS COMMENTING ON STRIKE, FILE OF PLANES, SAS CEO ANKO VAN DER WERFF AND PILOTS' UNION REPRESENTATIVE COMMENTING ON STRIKE
SENDING SHOTLIST. FULL SCRIPT TO FOLLOW
SHOWS: ARLANDA, NEAR STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (JULY 4, 2022)(TV4 - No use Sweden)
1. PASSENGERS IN DEPARTURE HALL
2. VARIOUS OF PASSENGERS QUEUING
3. VARIOUS OF DEPARTURE BOARD SHOWING A DOMESTIC SAS FLIGHT CANCELLED
4. (SOUNDBITE) (Swedish) SAS PASSENGERS ESTHER (LEFT) AND CLARA (RIGHT) WHO WERE SUPPOSED TO FLY TO GOTHENBURG, SAYING:
ESTHER: "We came here and went to stand in the check-in queue and we had printed the baggage tags and all that but we let everyone go in front of us in the queue because we didn't want to check anything in before we knew if there would be a strike or not because it would have taken the whole day to get our baggage out from Arlanda again which we didn't want to wait around for."
CLARA: "But it wasn't as if anyone said anything but everyone (staff) were like 'we don't know, we haven't found out anything so you can check in' and so."
5. DEPARTURE BOARD
6. (SOUNDBITE) (Swedish) SAS PASSENGERS ESTHER (LEFT) AND CLARA (RIGHT) WHO WERE SUPPOSED TO FLY TO GOTHENBURG, SAYING:
(Reporter asking: So what happens now?)
ESTHER: "We'll have to pack up here and go home and take the car."
CLARA: "We'll have to take the car to Gothenburg instead."
7. (SOUNDBITE) (Swedish) SAS PASSENGER, KAJSA, WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO FLY TO SPLIT, IN CROATIA, SAYING:
"I was supposed to fly out to meet my friends in Split but nothing will happen with that, not with SAS in any case so we'll have to see if I manage to book another flight. (Reporter asking: How does it feel that you weren't able to catch the flight?) "I am extremely angry right now but I suppose that will subside soon, I'll just have to refocus and find possibilities instead." (Reporter asking: Who are you angry with?) "It's difficult. I can understand the pilots of course so.. I'm angry with the situation."
8. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE QUEUING IN DEPARTURE HALL
9. PEOPLE LOOKING AT DEPARTURE BOARD
GARDEMOEN, NEAR OSLO, NORWAY (FILE - NOVEMBER 7, 2019) (REUTERS - Access all)
10. SCANDINAVIAN AIRLINES SYSTEM (SAS) PLANE BEING REFUELLED
11. PLANE REFUELLING IN PROCESS
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (JULY 4, 2022)(TV4 - No use Sweden)
12. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SAS CHIEF EXECUTIVE, ANKO VAN DER WERFF, SAYING:
"This is of course I think you’ve heard it by now really bad news. This is primarily really bad news for our passengers. We are really devastated. This was supposed to be the summer that everybody was looking forward to travel again. This is really bad news. It’s also bad news for the company, for the company because there is of course many people in the company that do not want to go on strike, that want to look after our customers. We have had the worst pandemic of our life time hopefully. We’ve received lots of taxpayers’ money and I really find it shameful that this is the way the pilots choose to repay the generosity and the patience that all of the countries have had in the last few years with the company.”
ARLANDA, NEAR STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (FILE) (REUTERS - Access all)
13. VARIOUS OF PARKED SAS PLANES
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (JULY 4, 2022)(TV4 - No use Sweden)
14. (SOUNDBITE)(English) SAS CHIEF EXECUTIVE, ANKO VAN DER WERFF, SAYING:
“Our door is open. We really want to make sure that of course that we get to the right outcome. But yes, the pilots have decided to go on strike.”
ARLANDA, NEAR STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (FILE) (REUTERS - Access all)
15. SAS PLANE TURNING
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (JULY 4, 2022) (TV4 - No use Sweden)
16. SAS PILOTS GROUP CHAIRMAN, MARTIN LINDGREN SURROUNDED BY MEDIA
17. (SOUNDBITE) (Swedish) SAS PILOTS GROUP CHAIRMAN, MARTIN LINDGREN, SAYING:
"For now there will be a strike and that means that some flights will be cancelled and we're really sorry that our passengers are affected by this. We hope to be able to return to the negotiating table and meet but for that to happen the employer needs to move (position)."
18. CAMERA OPERATORS
19. (SOUNDBITE) (Swedish) SAS PILOTS GROUP CHAIRMAN, MARTIN LINDGREN, SAYING:
"Much about this has of course been about the way SAS has treated its employees during the last few years. That has been one of the stumbling blocks in this. We've been trying to find a solution but we haven't been able to reach the finishing line."
ARLANDA, NEAR STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (FILE - APRIL 27, 2019) (REUTERS - Access all)
20. SAS PLANE TAKING OFF
STORY: Wage talks between Scandinavian airline SAS and its pilots collapsed on Monday (July 4), triggering a strike that puts the future of the carrier at risk and adds to travel chaos across Europe as the peak summer vacation period begins.
The action is the first major airline strike to hit when the industry is seeking to capitalise on the first full rebound in leisure travel following the pandemic.
At Arlanda airport near Stockholm, passenger Kajsa, who was supposed to fly to Split in Croatia to meet up with friends, said she was angry.
"I am extremely angry right now but I suppose that will subside soon, I'll just have to refocus and find possibilities instead," she said, adding that she did have some sympathy for the pilots.
"It's difficult. I can understand the pilots of course so.. I'm angry with the situation".
The collapse of the talks follows months of acrimony between employees and management as the airline seeks to recover from the impact of lockdowns without taking on costs it believes would leave it unable to compete with lower-cost rivals.
At the same time, employees across Europe are demanding wage rises as they struggle with surging living costs.
"This is really bad news. It’s also bad news for the company," SAS Chief Executive Anko van der Werff told reporters. He called the pilots' decision to strike "shameful."
Union leaders blamed SAS and SAS Pilot Group chairman Martin Lindgren told reporters that the pilots were ready to resume talks, but called on employers to change their stance.
The unions said nearly 1,000 pilots in Denmark, Sweden and Norway will join the strike, which is one of the biggest walkouts by airline workers since British Airways pilots in 2019 grounded most of the carrier's flights in a dispute over pay.
(Production: Ilze Filks)
