Out of curiosity, why are SAS operating flights from CPH and soon to be OSL too to STN? Is it simply that there aren't enough slots at LHR to operate these extra flights?

And if so, why did they choose STN over LGW (which is usually the second option for the legacy carriers)?

They already operate to LHR so that takes care of London. My guess is that LGW would be redundant and that STN serves a completely different market.
I wouldn't say the reason is slots because SAS has been selling LHR slots. I think it's just their business strategy to serve different airports.

8herveg wrote:

Out of curiosity, why are SAS operating flights from CPH and soon to be OSL too to STN? Is it simply that there aren't enough slots at LHR to operate these extra flights?

And if so, why did they choose STN over LGW (which is usually the second option for the legacy carriers)?

One of the main reasons is that it serves other markets than just London, unlike Heathrow. Cambridge is the main one.
SAS have also flown to Stansted before, so it seemed like the obvious choice to return.
OSL is only during a few weeks during the school holiday. It frees up a SAIL A320Neo from LHR to AGP to operate holiday flights.
The one CPH flight and the GOT flights (which are completely gone now) were moved to STN after SAS sold two slots at LHR

SASViking wrote:

8herveg wrote:

Out of curiosity, why are SAS operating flights from CPH and soon to be OSL too to STN? Is it simply that there aren't enough slots at LHR to operate these extra flights?

And if so, why did they choose STN over LGW (which is usually the second option for the legacy carriers)?

One of the main reasons is that it serves other markets than just London, unlike Heathrow. Cambridge is the main one.
SAS have also flown to Stansted before, so it seemed like the obvious choice to return.
OSL is only during a few weeks during the school holiday. It frees up a SAIL A320Neo from LHR to AGP to operate holiday flights.
The one CPH flight and the GOT flights (which are completely gone now) were moved to STN after SAS sold two slots at LHR

“Unlike Heathrow”?

Pretty sure Heathrow also serves more than just London.

Reading, and Oxford are the obvious examples of many.

Yes, STN does serve Cambridge - but Cambridge is a very small market. Sure there’s the university, tourism, and tech. But it’s still a small market. Even throwing in Suffolk and North Essex.

LGW which is also very accessible for Brighton, Surrey, and Kent has a much more populated catchment area than STN.

Wednesdayite wrote:

SASViking wrote:

8herveg wrote:

Out of curiosity, why are SAS operating flights from CPH and soon to be OSL too to STN? Is it simply that there aren't enough slots at LHR to operate these extra flights?

And if so, why did they choose STN over LGW (which is usually the second option for the legacy carriers)?

One of the main reasons is that it serves other markets than just London, unlike Heathrow. Cambridge is the main one.
SAS have also flown to Stansted before, so it seemed like the obvious choice to return.
OSL is only during a few weeks during the school holiday. It frees up a SAIL A320Neo from LHR to AGP to operate holiday flights.
The one CPH flight and the GOT flights (which are completely gone now) were moved to STN after SAS sold two slots at LHR

“Unlike Heathrow”?

Pretty sure Heathrow also serves more than just London.

Reading, and Oxford are the obvious examples of many.

Yes, STN does serve Cambridge - but Cambridge is a very small market. Sure there’s the university, tourism, and tech. But it’s still a small market. Even throwing in Suffolk and North Essex.

LGW which is also very accessible for Brighton, Surrey, and Kent has a much more populated catchment area than STN.

For SAS's P.O.V. Heathrow pretty much only serves London. Most of the pax, by far, to/from LHR are connections and people (business and leisure travellers alike) visiting London. That's also the reason why they cut the midday departure from CPH to LHR, it didn't fit in that well for what the market wanted. In the low business season, that flight (SK503) was often flown by CRJ's.
A city like Oxford is also served by SAS via BHX, which has a direct rail link to Oxford unlike Heathrow.

Sure there's more than just Cambridge for choosing STN. It also offers a link to Norfolk, (North) East London etc.
But one thing that especially Cambridge offers, making STN the prefered choice over LGW, LTN, SEN etc., is business ties. Pharmaceuticals being the main one, but also Danish company Rambøll (a Consulting Engineering company) have their UK HQ in Cambridge as an example. On top of that is the many language schools going to Cambridge from especially Denmark, but that's mainly in the summer.
Cambridge was also mentioned directly by SAS as a reason, when they reopened CPH-STN: https://www.businesstraveller.com/busin ... ted-route/

The London metropolitan area is massive, serving 14m people http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui ... r3&lang=en
As such, if you take the City of London and divide it like a clock, if you live in the 7 o'clock to 12 o'clock sector, LHR is great, 3 o'clock to 7 o'clock LGW is the best bet, and 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock STN is far more convenient. That makes one quarter of that 14m population finding Stansted more convenient than the other two main London airports.

Regarding the coming OSL-STN: It is only during the School Summer holiday (in Norway) and from midt June to early August. During a time when corporate travel to London is at a low