The Details

• Flight: SK1045
• Aircraft: A320neo
• Class: Plus
• Seat: 5A and 5F
• Route: Kiruna (KRN)-Stockholm Arlanda (ARN)
• Distance: 573miles
• Duration: 1hr 20min
• Departure: 2:11PM
• Arrival: 3:30PM

The Preflight

After spending the night in Kiruna with a trip up to Abisko National Park to view the Northern Lights, it was time for my father and me to fly back to Stockholm. We arrived at 12:20PM in the afternoon two hours prior to departure.

The terminal was one long rectangular building with a small check-in area.

Security did not open until 90 min prior to the scheduled departure time. Airside, there were two gates and one long room with a variety of chairs and tables. There was also a small cafe with food, drinks, and souvenirs.

Boarding began at 1:37PM and Plus passengers were invited to board first. We had a great view of the aircraft in the Arctic sun as we climbed the air stairs. Our aircraft, an A320neo with registration SE-ROR, was delivered brand new to SAS in July 2019. It was named Gandalff Viking.

The Flight

SAS does not offer a true business-class product on their intra-European flights. Instead, they offer a “Plus” cabin onboard their short-haul aircraft. The key difference between “Plus” and other European business-class products is that the middle seat is not blocked. The first eight rows on the A320neo are designated Plus seats while the remainder of the cabin is called “Go”. SAS offers a total of 180 seats onboard their A320neos arranged in a 3-3 configuration.

Each Recaro BL3520 slimline seat had 30″ of pitch in the first 10 rows. The seats were 17.7″ wide. Special seat features included a USB port and a built-in coat hook on the side of the seatback.

Beneath the literature pocket was a simple tray table with two cup holders and a storage pouch. Of note, the middle seat legroom was restricted due to a large box.

At 1:59PM the boarding doors were closed. Ten minutes later we began our taxi to runway 21.

We took off at 2:11PM with a stunning view of Kiruna and Northern Sweden.

One benefit of SAS Plus tickets is the access to free WiFi onboard. WiFi was fast and easy to connect to. In addition, passengers in the Plus cabin are provided a cold snack as well as free drinks.

The cold snack was served 40 minutes after takeoff. It was a Greek-style filo wrap with spinach. Drink options included either beer, red wine, soda, coffee, or tea. Hard liquor was not offered on intra-Scandinavian flights.

The forward lavatory was reserved for Plus passengers. It was basic without any clear unique features.

At 3:16PM, we began our initial descent into Stockholm. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon which gave us great views of the countryside.

We touched down at 3:30PM on time.

The taxi to gate 43 took just six minutes. Thanks for the ride!

I found the SAS Plus experience entirely unremarkable. While they do not specifically call Plus a “business” class product, the additional extras did not justify the additional supplement over the Go price.