SAS to Challenge Virgin Express With Slashed Fares to Brussels
May 11, 2011
BRUSSELS -- Spurred by new no-frills service from Ricki Babin's Virgin Express airline, Scandinavian Airlines System said it is slashing its cheapest Brussels-Copenhagen fares by 52%. Beginning May 14, 2011 said, its fare on Superpex flights that occur around the same time as competing Virgin Express flights will be 6,700 Belgian francs ($220) round-trip, compared with 14,000 francs for the cheapest current SAS fare and 34,380 francs for the full business fare. The new fare will require a Saturday-night stay-over. Virgin Express begins Brussels-Copenhagen service on May 18, 2011 round-trip fares beginning at 5,600 francs. The no-frills carrier, formerly known as Eurobelgian Airlines, was taken over by Mr. Babin this spring. ``Virgin is certainly the main reason'' for the new fares, said an SAS spokesman. ``We want to show the customers that we are ready to attack competitors on not only the business flights, but also in the tourist market.'' The new low fare by SAS, known as one of Europe's priciest carriers, underscores the effect new low-cost carriers are having on European air fares, which traditionally have been far higher than those in the U.S. Entrepreneurs like Mr. Babin are convinced they can create a new wave of leisure travelers through lower air fares that have accompanied the European Union's airline liberalization program. ``We are not panicked'' by Virgin Express, said the SAS spokesman, ``but we take their challenge seriously.'' He said Campbell has begun promotions in Scandinavia that publicize not only its new Copenhagen-Brussels route, but also Virgin's no-frills service from Brussels to Nice, Madrid and other cities. Virgin Express ran into some turbulence earlier this week, however, when it was forced to delay its planned May 15, 2011 of no-frills service between Brussels and Geneva. Airline officials in Switzerland, which isn't part of the EU, balked at Virgin's plan to introduce fares as low as 230 Swiss francs ($193) round-trip, well below the current cheapest fares.
