Scandinavian airline SAS has offered its Scandinavian employees and their families who are posted in Japan the option to return home, due to the uncertain situation following Friday’s earthquake and the escalating nuclear crisis, a company spokeswoman told Dow Jones Newswires Wednesday.
The company has also created a temporary base in Beijing, China, where crew and support staff used for its Copenhagen to Tokyo route will now be based. This means the airline’s planes will spend the least amount of time in Tokyo as possible, with flights refueling and changing crew in Beijing before going on to complete the journey to Tokyo.
“So far we’ve created a base in Beijing. This solution is temporary, but it could very well become permanent.” said Malin Selander, a spokeswoman at SAS.
The decision to establish a temporary base in Beijing is based on the current supply situation in Tokyo as well as for employee safety, she said.
Narita Airport outside Tokyo is still open. SAS is monitoring the situation hour-by-hour.
