Scandinavian Airlines Launching New York JFK to Copenhagen Flight

Scandinavian Airlines, known as SAS, will be launching flights from New York’s JFK airport to Copenhagen (CPH) in Denmark in 2023. This new flight will allow passengers to fly into Copenhagen and then jump to a number of Scandinavian destinations that SAS flies to out of this hub.

The Flight

The flight will depart on Sunday, Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and while it will initially operate on a 5x a week basis starting February 9, 2023, the flight will operate daily over the busy summer period when tourists typically visit Scandinavia. During the winter season, the flight will operate on an Airbus A321LR with 157 seats and then move to an Airbus A330-300 with 262 seats during the summer. As a note, Delta currently offers this route 5x a week on a Boeing 767-300 with 216 seats.

Both SAS aircraft will operate with a lie-flat business class product, a recliner seat premium economy cabin, and a traditional economy class section.

Here is the flight schedule:

• Depart New York (JFK) 11:00 p.m. — Arrive Copenhagen (CPH) 12:55 p.m. (+1)
• Depart Copenhagen (CPH) 6:25 p.m. — Arrive New York (JFK) 9:30 p.m.

These flight times are quite interesting. As a Star Alliance airline, SAS doesn’t have a great partner at JFK since United recently suspended operations there, so most traffic will follow an origin and destination pattern, at least for U.S. arrivals. This means SAS doesn’t need to time the flight well for connections and that is why you see a late evening arrival into the U.S.

Unfortunately, the arrival is so late that it leaves no opportunity to do anything that night, so if you’re a business traveler, the earliest you’d be able to schedule a business meeting is the following day. The plus side is that the flight leaving the U.S. allows a full day of work in the U.S., and even dinner. The departure from the U.S. is quite late, especially for a flight of this length, but will still allow you to connect in Copenhagen. The flight to Europe will take 9 hours and 5 minutes.

Hot Tip: Make sure to check out the definitive guide to Scandinavian Airlines’ direct routes from the U.S., including plane types and seat options.

Final Thoughts

While SAS is struggling financially, it’s nice to see it attempt an expansion in the U.S. and complement flights that are currently offered out of Newark (EWR). With the addition of this JFK flight, SAS will operate several New York area flights to Copenhagen a week, not including other Scandinavian destinations such as Stockholm (ARN) or Oslo (OSL) available from Newark (EWR).