Why SR Or SK Never Flew To MEX?

Airlineslover · Fri Sep 16, 2005 12:50 pm

If anybody knows this thing I really apreciate your info.... I was wondering why SR when this great airline existed never flew to MEX or SK didn't put a flt between CPH-MEX

EddieDude · Sat Sep 17, 2005 12:43 am

Hi Víctor, I hope you are doing alright. I have really no idea, but I have to wonder the same thing. I can think of several reasons but I am only guessing. One could be that LH, AF, KL, BA and IB have more than covered the market and are pretty convenient for most if not all Western Europeans and while the market could have easily taken one more carrier, this would have resulted in yield dilution. Another reason I can think of is that these two perhaps never had sufficient planes in their fleets and whichever routes they decided to open through improving their fleet utilization management or through leasing/buying new planes were routes were the ability to make a profit is higher. I really don't know but I am sure someone else can give us better answers. Sadly, LX will probably never fly to MEX since LH is now their parent and they are better off routing passengers through FRA. On the other hand, SK seems to have many issues with fleet size, aircraft types and decision making processes, so I don't think we will see them here any time soon.

By the way Víctor, I don't know if you received my Monday night e-mail (Tuesday morning in Italy); let me know. In any case, I will write some more soon.

Avianca · Sat Sep 17, 2005 12:51 am

well I would say that in the past the mexican market was not such big to europe and the route was covered even carrier like LH did not served mex daily and not nonstop ... when the market gowed all carrier that were already in the market increased the flights and the capacitys due new nonstop service. now carriers like sas has better conection throught the hubs of the alliance partners, same situation for LX (SR)....

regards
Avianca

transswede · Sat Sep 17, 2005 12:52 am

I just don't think that there has ever been enough Scandinavia - Mexico traffic to justify a direct route. Neither region is on the top of the other region's "Must visit" list.

[Edited 2005-09-16 17:52:39]

Avianca · Sat Sep 17, 2005 1:01 am

Quoting TransSwede (Reply 3):
I just don't think that there has ever been enough Scandinavia - Mexico traffic to justify a direct route.

I do not think so, more the route situation in the past was the problem....

Look SK even had flights to MVD and I can not imagine that there is bigger traffice between Scandinavia and Uruguay than to Scandinavia and Mexico...

regards
Avianca

A999 · Sat Sep 17, 2005 2:06 am

The MVD flight (which also served Dakar, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and Santiago) was started to cater mostly for Scandinavian shipping interrests in the region. But alas, shipping is not what it used to be either.....

Airlineslover · Sat Sep 17, 2005 11:55 am

Thnks guys for the info, I still remember when we had to flight between MEX and MAD with the YMX stopover, maybe in that times MEX wasn't a good or a top first class destination for european airlines, but even SN in the 80's flew BRU-YMX-MEX and in the early 90's Interflug (ex-comunist Germany airline) flew SXF-HAV-MEX or OK PRG-YQX-HAV-MEX...... anyway thanks a lot see you in the next post..... cheers

ghost77 · Sat Sep 17, 2005 2:07 pm

Back in the 70s/80s (don't know exact dates) both airlines flew to MEX! I don't have pics to back-up that, but other slide collectors have in their collection nice pics of SK and SR at my home airport!

ghost77

sr117 · Sat Sep 17, 2005 2:20 pm

If memory serves me right.. I remember reading that at one time in the 50s, SAS held an important stake in then biggie airline Aerovias Guest. Aerovias Guest went on to become part of Aeronaves de Mexico (predecessor to AeroMexico).

So in a way, half a century ago, SAS served Mexico through Aerovías Guest !

stirling · Sat Sep 17, 2005 11:57 pm

Quoting Ghost77 (Reply 7):
Back in the 70s/80s (don't know exact dates) both airlines flew to MEX! I don't have pics to back-up that, but other slide collectors have in their collection nice pics of SK and SR at my home airport!

That's what I was thinking too.
At least with Swissair. Maybe in their heyday in the 70's/80's....not sure about SAS..
I'll do some research, because I would have served MEX with at least a single frequency, and if not nonstop, maybe via an intermediate stop in North America.

aviationmaster · Sun Sep 18, 2005 12:07 am

The reason of why Swissair never flew to MEX is because the operation would not have been profitable. My dad knew the representative of Swissair in MEX, when we lived there in the 90s and she had said that Swissair had plans of launching ZRH-MEX service via Geneva, after they conducted a costumer based survey wherein MEX was the passengers number 1 wish-destination.

Now the interesting part, she said that all European airlines flying to Mexico are not making a profit, eventhough they have great loads. But this was during the 90s, so I don't know if this has changed now.

juventus · Sun Sep 18, 2005 1:15 am

Flying from Scandinavia to Mexico, it is so convenient and easy to connect in one of the big Eastern US airports ( IAD, ATL, MIA), that why risk direct flights that might/might not work. There is a market, just go to Cabo, CUN or PVR, and you'll see.

swisswings · Sun Sep 18, 2005 2:21 am

Mexico City would probalby hot have generated enough traffic for SR in times before the Global Excellence Alliance with DL. Later, SR flew to Mexico in code-share with DL via Atlanta, if I recall correctly. This seems to have satisfied the existing needs. As for Mexico traffic, charters to Cancun have a long tradition in Switzerland. They were and are operated by Edelweiss and Belair (formerly Balair). Viva México!

aviationmaster · Sun Sep 18, 2005 2:40 am

I remember that the ZRH-ATL-ZRH (SR120,121) flights always had many people travelling to and from Mexico on board. Same now goes for the ZRH-MIA-ZRH. For a relative small airline like Swissair (or nowadays Swiss) it was probably cheaper to have passengers connect via the US, than have 2 MD11s just to operate the flight. Would have been an awsome site though bigthumbsup

juventus · Sun Sep 18, 2005 5:07 am

Quoting Swisswings (Reply 12):
Mexico City would probalby hot have generated enough traffic for SR in times before the Global Excellence Alliance with DL. Later, SR flew to Mexico in code-share with DL via Atlanta, if I recall correctly. This seems to have satisfied the existing needs

Agree. This is why many international airlines don't fly to Mexico. Its too close to the US. If coming from Asia, you connect in LAX or SFO, if coming from Europe, JFK, ATL, or MIA will be the connecting points. Its cheaper and efficient.

A999 · Sun Sep 18, 2005 6:31 am

If an SAS plane was ever to be seen at MEX it had to be a charter or a high level state visit.

USADreamliner · Sun Sep 18, 2005 6:54 am

Remember that South american countries like Brazil,Argentina,Chile and Colombia they have large German,Russian,Polish and Italian communities ,more than Mexico.
I think that with BA,AF,KL,LH,IB and AM the European market is covered.

Regards.
USADreamliner

juventus · Sun Sep 18, 2005 7:00 am

Quoting USADreamliner (Reply 16):
Remember that South american countries like Brazil,Argentina,Chile and Colombia they have large German,Russian,Polish and Italian communities ,more than Mexico.
I think that with BA,AF,KL,LH,IB and AM the European market is covered.

Well, don't forget about the 25 million people that visit Mexico each year. The majority are American and Canadian, but there are many Europeans as well. But yes, I agree with you

EddieDude · Sun Sep 18, 2005 10:30 am

Quoting AviationMaster (Reply 10):
she said that all European airlines flying to Mexico are not making a profit, eventhough they have great loads. But this was during the 90s, so I don't know if this has changed now.

After the 1995 peso crisis that was triggered by the idiocy of the Minister of Finance in Dec. 1994, the operations of European carriers to MEX were bleeding red ink. I really can't believe that LH, which had just introduced 744 service decided not to pull the plug! In any case, that was then and this is now. MEX is a very profitable destination for the likes of LH, IB, AF, KL and BA. Should rank as one of their top routes in the Americas.

AR385 · Sun Sep 18, 2005 4:43 pm

Quoting Airlineslover (Reply 6):
and in the early 90's Interflug (ex-comunist Germany airline) flew SXF-HAV-MEX

Nope, you are correct on the OK part, but Interflug never flew to MEX. The OK flight originated after Prague's velvet revoulion and a state visit to Mexico by Vaclav Havel. I don't know if they were just symbolic flights but did not las very long.

Other European airlines flew to MEX and then dropped it and took it up again. BA had an MEX-MSY-LON flight on and L-1011 dropped it for what? 12 yrs. ? then took it up again. Alitalia had one on a 747. (I saw them land many times) Even LA retook MEX-SCL in 1989? after dropping it in the 70's but that was for political reasons.

As for SR or SK, I guess the market was never there. There certainly never was any O&D while other countries of Latin America have big colonies of Scandinavian or Swiss population. Think Southern Brasil, Argentina, Uruguay, even Chile.

Business traffic, well, Mexico's economy first business partner is the US then Japan and Germany, the Swiss and Scandinavian countries do not have much of an interest in our economy.

My opinion is that that is the reason. Although, I've flown both airlines and been to all of Scandinavia and all of Switzerland and would be as happy as a clam is they had a flight.

XA744 · Mon Sep 19, 2005 4:14 am

... When Lufthansa and BOAC entered the Mexican market in the late 60´s , SAS and Swissair were also making plans to add MEX to their network. I remember having seen SK´s timetables showing Mexico as one of their projected routes for two or three editions on a row. Both SK and SR operated their own off-line offices on the same street in the heart of the Pink Zone in Mexico City for many years.

I recall having seen a Swissair DC-8-62 and an SK´s DC-8-63 at MEX during 1966 and 1967. The SK DC-8 was bearing also the sign of Thai International, which was part of Scandinavian´s system at that time.

Sabena, KLM, Air France and Iberia were the only four European carriers serving Mexico up to the mid 60´s. Aeronaves de Mexico was the only Mexican carrier across the Atlantic operating only to MAD.

Regards

FBU 4EVER! · Mon Sep 19, 2005 9:03 pm

SAS did operate a few charter flights to MEX in 67-68 in connection with the Olympic Games.I believe our charter subsidiary,Scanair,also operated a few flights to Cancun in the late 70's or early 80's but I'm not sure.

Regular SAS service to Mexico have never existed,and probably never will.Any of our passengers with a Mexican destination will be best served by other Star alliance carriers like LH and UA.

sk945 · Tue Sep 20, 2005 1:47 am

There are charter flights to Mexico from Scandinavia. Novair have flights from ARN to Playa del carmen and/or Cancun with charter tourist.

TR · Tue Sep 20, 2005 3:03 pm

I flew on a SAS DC-10-30 to/from MEX during the summer of 1986. We went to see a few of Denmark's games at the World Cup. If recall correctly the aircraft even had a special paint and/or sticker. Unfortunately my photes from that tour was lost a few years back so maybe another member can varify this?!

adriaticus · Tue Sep 20, 2005 3:16 pm

Quoting XA744 (Reply 20):
Sabena, KLM, Air France and Iberia were the only four European carriers serving Mexico up to the mid 60´s. Aeronaves de Mexico was the only Mexican carrier across the Atlantic operating only to MAD.

It is amazing how little things have changed in 40 years... Drop Sabena, add BA, LH and (just very recently) Air Europa, plus the AM flights to CDG... And that's it.

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