New chairman faces tough task of reviving SAS

Kåre Schultz, with a strong background in the pharmaceutical industry, has been appointed as the new chairman of the troubled airline SAS. Schultz is set to navigate SAS through its new chapter following the exit from bankruptcy protection and welcomes new owners, including Castlelake, Air France-KLM, Lind Invest, and the Danish state. His role includes proving SAS can operate sustainably both financially and environmentally, with a focus on optimizing operations, route selection, and collaborations. While previous company turnarounds he led, like at Lundbeck and Teva, involved significant layoffs, Schultz sees SAS’s current phase as offensive, aiming to optimize without immediate plans for changing the workforce. He emphasizes SAS’s importance in connecting Scandinavia to the world and contributes to the region’s economic growth and prosperity.