Review of SAS flight Copenhagen Aarhus in Economy

Airline SAS
Flight SK1247
Class Economy
Seat 19A
Aircraft ATR 72-600
Flight time 00:25
Take-off 22 Nov 19, 12:38
Arrival at 22 Nov 19, 13:03
SK   #59 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 214 reviews
marcelltoth
Published on 14th February 2020

Routing


Hey again,

I arrived from Budapest to Copenhagen at around 9:00 and I was supposed to attend an university activity in the city. This was cancelled last minute so I started thinking about going to Aarhus the same day. I didn't have a booking because I didn't know when I would to be able to go. Tricky situation but I guess I really made the most of it.

There are several ways to get from Copenhagen to Denmark’s second city. The cheapest option (from 13€) is the Flixbus company. Getting there takes roughly 4 hours – for me this seemed to be quite boring. Taking the bus-ferry combo via Sjællands Odde is more interesting (from 14€) – but still takes about 4 hours from the airport. Another way to get there was by train; the service quality provided by the state railways of Denmark is clearly high – just like the fares shortly before departure. I would’ve loved to go by seaplane (opt by Nordic Seaplanes), it’s been on my bucket list for a long time now. But this is mostly for business people so its price is obviously very expensive (around 250€ each way). I opted for SAS’s youth fare (25 or younger) and paid about 40€ for the one-way flight. Yes, three hours before departure! The ticket price would have normally been 140€ but SAS is generous to offer cheap tickets on this route to young people even very shortly before taking off.

I booked on my phone but as it was about to die I asked a kind lady at the SAS transfer desk to print out my boarding pass. She was happy to help me. 


photo 20191122_091310

I made my way to the SAS business lounge since I still had 2,5 hours before the gate was due to close. I purchased access at the front desk. The interior is stylish:



It was still breakfast time when I arrived: 



My choice: 


photo 20191122_104540

The lounge is also perfect for those who want to relax:
(Note: there are shower facilities available) 



There’s even a real fireplace: 


photo 20191122_112833

And a working zone (with computers and printers): 


photo 20191122_101244photo 20191122_101611

Meanwhile they started serving lunch:



I had a bowl of SAS’ signature tomato soup along with bulgur, feta cheese, salmon rillette and salads. The meal was completely restaurant quality, especially the soup. Don’t miss it if you’re here!

More pictures of the lounge: 



Some interesting facts of today:


photo 20191122_095451

I asked an assistant when boarding would normally start and she answered „in these seconds”. She was right so I went to gate E1 at 11:55.


photo 20191122_115346

The new part of the airport: 


photo 20191122_115643

Our gate from where boarding is by bus: 


photo 20191122_115729

This Scandinavian Airlines-operated, Regional Jet-owned, Estonian-registered ATR-72-600 aircraft with a Nordica livery carried us on this Danish domestic route today:



View and legroom in the last row: 


photo 20191122_121233photo 20191122_121107

While the attendants demonstrated the safety features we taxied to the runway, took off at 12:38 and turned immediately westbound. 


photo 20191122_125719

A friendly cabin crew member came to me and said that he had noticed me taking pictures of the aircraft and asked if I was into aviation. I answered „yes, definitely” and we chatted a bit about this plane type. He offered that he’d ask the captain if he allows me to enter the cockpit after landing. I got super excited :D

Some tea and coffee were offered later:  


photo 20191122_124630

I found some interesting articles in the onboard magazine (SAS’ brand new A350, developing the route network, how to install wi-fi on aircrafts) but I didn’t have time to read them.



We reached the cruising altitude of 14,000 ft at 12:49 and started descent at 12:51 – yes, it was a short hop. We landed in Aarhus at 13:03 so the total flight time was 25 minutes.

Aarhus Airport’s terminal building is almost as big as London-Heathrow (joke): 


photo 20191122_131156

I wasn’t able to have a look in the cockpit due to our 3-minute delay. But it was still a great flight onboard ES-ATB: 


photo 20191122_131210photo 20191122_131348

The airport from in- and outside: 



I was already on the bus which connects the airport and the city centre only eight minutes after landing. The bus departs according to the arrival of the flights.


photo 20191122_131654

Thanks for reading!

See more

Verdict

SAS

9.0/10
Cabin9.0
Cabin crew10.0
Entertainment/wifi8.5
Meal/catering8.5

SAS Business Lounge

8.6/10
Comfort9.0
Meal/catering7.5
Entertainment/wifi9.0
Services9.0

Copenhagen - CPH

9.2/10
Efficiency9.0
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness10.0

Aarhus - AAR

9.8/10
Efficiency10.0
Access9.0
Services10.0
Cleanliness10.0

Conclusion

I’m always happy when I fly, especially when flying an off the beaten path like this. The only complaint is that the flight was too short. My expectations about the lounge were met: it was comfortable and nicely designed but the food selection could have been better. CPH is huge and efficient. Aarhus Airport is a cute regional airport and was a pleasure to visit it.

Related

6 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 542278 by
    KL651 TEAM 4534 Comments
    Thanks for this review.
    Too bad you didn't get to fly on an ATR72 with the gorgeous new SAS livery.
    Service is basiacally the same as on any other european flight despite the really short duration.
    The lounge looks nice and considering the price of food and drink in Denmark it's much better value for money to purchase lounge access.
    • Comment 542282 by
      marcelltoth AUTHOR 13 Comments
      Hey KL651, thanks for your comment. I agree, the new SK livery looks very cool, especially on the ATRs. Even so, the Nordica-coloured aircrafts are quite rare too so I don’t mind that I flew this. Yes, the lounge access was a pretty good deal cause the Scandinavian countries are pricey.
  • Comment 542593 by
    wop 345 Comments
    Thanks for this report!
    Do you know where the crew is based? Estonia? Denmark?

Login to post a comment.