The SAS pilots are extending the exemption for Svalbard. This is stated by the Norwegian Pilots’ Association in a press release on Sunday night. Several hundred air passengers have been stranded in Longyearbyen for almost a week due to the pilot strike in SAS. Earlier on Sunday, the SAS pilots granted a dispensation for one flight on Monday. On Sunday evening, the SAS Pilot Group (SPG) states that they have notified SAS that a dispensation will be granted for all planned SAS flights to and from Svalbard next week, up to and including Sunday 17 July. «The pilots have had a close dialogue with the Governor of Svalbard about Svalbard’s special situation, and want to provide predictability and security for the population on Svalbard. The dispensation helps to ensure Svalbard access to critical personnel and equipment “, writes Roger Klokset, head of the SAS pilots, in a press release. To ensure access to critical personnel and equipment The SAS pilots have made exceptions from the strike so that stranded charter tourists this weekend have been flown home from several places in Europe. But the exception did not apply to Svalbard. – For us, it is a very difficult situation. I am concerned about societal functions; we have critical health personnel who must be transported up to Svalbard and down. We have, among other things, nurses and personnel on rescue helicopters who are now on the mainland, Assistant Governor Sølvi Elvedahl told news earlier this weekend. On Saturday, she therefore sent a message to SAS. In the e-mail, the Governor requested that an exception be made for Svalbard. SAS followed up on the request from the Governor and asked the pilots’ unions for a dispensation for Svalbard as well. On Sunday afternoon, the pilots granted a dispensation for one flight, to ensure access to critical personnel and equipment on the archipelago. A few hours later, the dispensation was further extended. Now all SAS flights to and from Svalbard next week will run as normal. More than 1,000 flights canceled in Norway 900 SAS pilots went on strike on Monday 4 July, and since then 1,004 flights in Norway have been canceled. In Svalbard, several hundred permanent residents and tourists have been affected by the pilot strike in SAS. In recent days, only Norwegian has flown ordinary routes. The first available ticket is at the end of July, the overview shows on Norwegian’s own website. Assistant Governor Sølvi Elvedahl confirms that it has been difficult to find alternative transport to the mainland. – We try to look at other solutions, but it is difficult up here. We are 100 miles from the nearest hub, Tromsø. There are some private airlines that offer opportunities, but it is very expensive and few seats. There are also ships that can take people to the mainland, but it takes time, Elvedahl told news earlier this weekend.
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expands the dispensation for Svalbard – news Troms and Finnmark
