If you last flew to Scandinavia a few years ago, the airline partnerships you remember have changed. SAS, the main airline of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, left Star Alliance at the end of August 2024 and joined SkyTeam on 1 September 2024. That one switch changes which US airline you should pair it with, where your miles go and which lounges you can use.
What happened, in short
- 31 August 2024: SAS's last day in Star Alliance, the alliance of United, Lufthansa and Air Canada.
- 1 September 2024: SAS joined SkyTeam, the alliance of Delta, Air France, KLM and others.
- EuroBonus stayed. SAS kept its own loyalty programme; what changed is which partners it works with.
- Air France-KLM became a shareholder. It holds a minority stake and has started proceedings to take a majority, which, as of November 2026, still awaits approval from European competition authorities.
One-ticket connections from your US city
Most US cities have no nonstop to Scandinavia, so the first leg matters. Before the switch, many travelers flew United to Newark or Chicago and connected onto SAS on one ticket. Since SAS left Star Alliance, United and SAS are no longer partners, so that pairing is usually two separate tickets. If the first flight is late, the second airline does not have to rebook you.
SAS now codeshares with Delta, so a Delta flight to a US gateway followed by SAS across the Atlantic can be sold as one booking. The other one-ticket route is to connect in Europe: Copenhagen on SAS's own network, or Amsterdam and Paris with KLM and Air France, with a short final flight to Oslo or Stockholm.
Whichever you choose, check that the whole trip is on a single booking reference before you pay. A one-ticket itinerary is the difference between being rebooked and buying a new ticket at the airport.
Miles, status and lounges
- United MileagePlus: flights on SAS no longer earn United miles, and EuroBonus points can no longer be used on United.
- SkyTeam status: EuroBonus Silver matches SkyTeam Elite, and EuroBonus Gold and Diamond match SkyTeam Elite Plus, the level that brings lounge access on international SkyTeam journeys.
- Lounges: access in SAS lounges now follows your ticketed cabin or SkyTeam Elite Plus status, not Star Alliance Gold.
If you hold status with United, it no longer helps on SAS. If you fly Delta, the partnership now works in your favour.
Where SAS flies from the US
For 2026, SAS lists flights from Atlanta, Boston, Chicago O'Hare, Los Angeles, Miami, New York JFK, Newark, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington Dulles. Several of these are seasonal: Seattle has been a summer route and Miami a winter one, and the New York airports change between seasons. Check the schedule for your exact dates before you plan around a nonstop.
Our route guides spell this out city by city. New York to Oslo explains the Newark and summer JFK nonstops, Seattle to Copenhagen covers the nonstop there, and Los Angeles to Oslo compares the one-stop routings. Every guide into each city is on one page: flights to Oslo, flights to Copenhagen and flights to Stockholm.
What has not changed yet
Delta, Air France, KLM and Virgin Atlantic run a transatlantic joint venture that coordinates schedules and shares revenue. As of November 2026, SAS is not part of it; joining needs approval from US, EU and UK regulators. Until then, SAS and Delta cooperate as codeshare and alliance partners rather than as one joint business, so schedules are not yet planned together.
How to book a Scandinavia trip now
- Start from your own city. Open the route guide for your departure city, for example Denver to Copenhagen or Boston to Stockholm, to see which connections make sense.
- Prefer one ticket. Delta with SAS, or SAS, KLM and Air France through their European hubs.
- Credit miles where they count. On SAS that is now EuroBonus or a SkyTeam programme, not United.
- Check the season. SAS's US network changes between summer and winter, so confirm the flight operates on your dates.
