Well, SOMEBODY'S Gotta Pay

You know the world has changed when mercy missions that would have been flown for free a dozen years ago now cost someone millions of dollars -- and that someone gets a bill. Such is the case with SAS, the Scandinavian airline serving Sweden, Denmark and Norway.

Those three countries this week got a bill for $4 million -- the cost of extra flights flown by SAS from Northern Europe to South Asia, where the airline picked up Europeans caught in the terrible tsunami that struck December 26th.
 
SAS was called in by the governments of those three countries in the very early days after the mammoth waves washed over 13 countries, including Indonesia, Thailand and India. The airline, jointly owned by the three Scandinavian countries, says no one should be the least surprised at the bill -- the governments had
signed a contract for the flights, personnel and planes.

Sweden's Sveriges Radio reports it won't be the last bills those governments get, according to SAS. Charter companies also flew extra relief missions and are expected to bill the three governments as well.

(ANN Contributor Matthew French, in Turku, Finland, contributed to this report)

FMI: www.scandinavian.net