Scandinavian carrier SAS sells domestic airline to CityJet

Scandinavian Airlines says it will sell Cimber, the Danish domestic airline it acquired in February 2015, to Irish regional airline CityJet.

The airline said Tuesday that the divestment of Cimber, which includes the sale of 11 Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft, "is part of the simplification of the SAS production platform."

It added that once the transaction is completed Jan. 31, CityJet will place an order for up to ten new CRJ900s, which will be wet leased to SAS.

The Stockholm-based airline said "smaller traffic flows are managed by partners," describing CityJet as a "strategic partner" that already operates eight CRJ900s for Scandinavian Airlines.

The company said the divestment "will have a negative nonrecurring effect on earnings of 20 million kronor ($2.3 million) during the first quarter of 2016-2017."