SAS postpones delivery of Boeing, Airbus aircraft Wednesday January 30, 7:59 AM EST COPENHAGEN, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Scandinavian flag carrier SAS AB (SAS) has deferred deliveries of 15 aircraft ordered from manufacturers Airbus and Boeing Co (BA), an SAS spokeswoman said on Wednesday. Each plane would be delayed by about six months, she said. "The revised delivery plan has been adopted to secure an improved match between the markets' needs and SAS's plan for fleet expansion," she said. The deferred aircraft have a catalogue value of approximately $1 billion. The spokeswoman said that Airbus, 80 percent owned by European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co NV (EAD)(EAD), had agreed to delay deliveries of nine A321 narrow-body planes and the first of four A330-300 wide-bodies that SAS is buying. Arrival of the A330 has been postponed to February 2003 from its original delivery date, August 2002. Five Boeing 737s would also arrive later than planned. But SAS was maintaining its plans to buy a total of seven Airbus A340-300, four of which have already been delivered, the spokeswoman said. Like most of the world's airlines, SAS has seen much weaker traffic since the September 11 attacks, which frightened many potential travellers away from flying. The airline operates from Sweden, Denmark and Norway and is half-owned by the three countries' governments. Recently elected administrations in Denmark and Norway have said they might consider selling their stakes.