On Sunday at 1 pm, the head of the SAS pilots in Norway, Roger Klokset, informs TV2 that the pilots will grant one dispensation for Svalbard on Monday. This is to ensure access to critical personnel and equipment on the archipelago. Klokset informs the channel that there will be a round trip to Longyearbyen on Svalbard tomorrow. The plane will depart from Oslo via Tromsø, both ways, but will only be available to passengers going to and from Longyearbyen. Further dispensation to Svalbard will be considered on an ongoing basis. Did not get an exception for Svalbard flights The SAS pilots have made an exception from the strike so that stranded charter tourists are flown home from several places in Europe this weekend. But the exception did not apply to Svalbard. Assistant Governor Sølvi Elvedahl sent a letter to SAS on Saturday morning. In the letter, the Governor requested that SAS make an exception for Svalbard. SAS followed up on the request from the Governor and asked the pilots’ unions for a dispensation for Svalbard as well. The parties worked on Saturday with a solution for Svalbard, but on Sunday morning no solution had come to the table. – We have neither accepted nor rejected the application from SAS. We have not been able to take a position on the question of exceptions because we have not gathered enough information. It is about needs and alternative transport options, said leader of the Norwegian SAS pilots’ association, Roger Klokset to news. Elvedahl believes the situation on Svalbard is beginning to become critical. – 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. – During this week, I think we will have problems both in terms of rescue and emergency preparedness if we do not get the personnel we need. Now the SAS pilots have met the Governor and give dispensation for one flight to and from Svalbard. Assistant Governor Sølvi Elvedahl urges that an exception be made for Svalbard in the pilot strike. Photo: Vilde Kristine Malmo / news 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. Some of them have been accommodated on German cruise ships to the mainland. Hurtigruten Svalbard and TUI Cruises are offering a helping hand. On Sunday, news is informed that 124 people, including seven children, will travel with the German cruise ship on Sunday night. Most go ashore in Tromsø. Mapping alternative transport The SAS pilots will now consider further dispensation to Svalbard on an ongoing basis. – We have a dialogue with the Governor of Svalbard to map the need. We are also conducting research to find out if it is possible to use alternative means of transport to avoid the use of pilots who are on a legal strike, says Roger Klokset to news. – Do you think about using cruise ships? – I do not want to go into which solutions are being studied. We will first complete the survey we are working on now. Klokset says he fully understands the frustration among permanent residents and tourists on Svalbard who do not get to the mainland. – We take the issue of dispensation very seriously, he assures. – Lack of understanding of reality – There is a shocking lack of understanding of reality, says Ronny Bruvoll in Visit Svalbard about the answer from the pilot leader. He says the tourism industry is desperate and believes it should have been easy for the unions to put their finger on the map and measure the distance between Svalbard and the mainland. – Then you see how far it is and how few transport options we have. Several hundred permanent residents and tourists are stuck on Svalbard as a result of the pilot strike. Photo: Line Nagell Ylvisåker Assistant Governor Sølvi Elvedahl confirms that it is 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. SAS has nine out of twelve weekly departures between Longyearbyen and the mainland. Now only Norwegian flies ordinary routes, with three departures a week. The first available ticket is at the end of July, the overview shows on the company’s own website. – Norwegian tickets are sold on the black market at wild prices, says Elvedahl. – We ask that SAS set up at least a few routes for us.
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Allows one flight to and from Svalbard – news Troms and Finnmark
