STOCKHOLM • Troubled Scandinavian airline SAS, which has filed for bankruptcy in the US, reported on Wednesday deeper losses in the fourth quarter.

Net losses amounted to more than 1.2 billion Swedish kronor (RM505.97 million) in the August-October period, compared to a loss of 744 million kronor a year earlier, the company said in a statement.

“As with previous quarters in 2022, the currencies (foreign exchange) and jet-fuel price have brought strong headwinds for our business,” said SAS chief executive Anko van der Werff.

The airline, however, saw the “highest number” of passengers since the beginning of the Covid pandemic, with healthy demand in the summer, van der Werff said.

The airline, which cut 5,000 jobs in 2020, is preparing for “substantial recruitments and rehirings” to meet the expected increase in demand next summer, he added.

SAS filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the US in July — a move allowing a company to restructure its debts under court supervision.

Van der Werff said the airline expected to complete the court-supervised process during the second half of 2023. – AFP / pic Bloomberg