I’ll be in Seattle next week for the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) 2011 Expo, and I’m excited. But while I’m up there, I’m going to take some time to go meet with the good folks at Alaska Airlines. Anything in particular you’d like me to ask about?
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Written by Zack Rules on September 9, 2011. Reply
Could you ask them if they have considered purchasing a few widebody jets? With a handful of 787′s, they could do reasonably well out of Seattle to places like Asia and Europe.
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Written by Zack Rules on September 9, 2011. Reply
That is what you would think. A few years ago, Dave Barger at JetBlue would have said the same thing but recently, he said that they would like the range to serve more of Latin America and that a widebody might be the answer. Granted, strange comparison to Alaska but considering their case, a strong largely unchallenged hub with some international widebody flights, it would not be so far fetched. Partnerships/interlines with other airlines, especially Delta, are an important first step towards flying one’s own metal.
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Written by Todd on September 9, 2011. Reply
1. Unlike JetBlue, AS has extensive partnership with many long-haul carriers (i.e., most of oneworld and Skyteam) and has been doing so for many years.
2. JetBlue still does not fly widebody aircraft (nor does WN, F9, FL or any other comperably sized US airline not based in the Aloha State).
3. AS likes having a single fleet type.
4. The DL partership and other codeshares are hardly a prelude to anything. AS has been codesharing on international routes for decades, but we’ve not seen any indication that they plan to start doing international long-haul flying themselvs.
5. AS’s market cap is higher than every US-based airline except DL, WN, and UA. Why mess with a strategy that is working?
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
Hey guys – chiming in with answers to your questions courtesy of Alaska. Regarding fleet, it’s a very general answer. They’re very happy with the fleet they have right now, including Horizon and SkyWest. They love the 737 as well. So don’t look for any dramatic changes anytime soon.
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Written by Chris on September 9, 2011. Reply
How much more Hawaii growth do they plan on for 2012? Will their new 737s being delivered have the new Boeing sky interior?
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Written by Jason H on September 9, 2011. Reply
I can think of a few things I’d like to know.
1 – Given the softening economy are they seeing a reduction in pre-booking anywhere in their system? Do they have a contingency plan to reduce ASM if the economy softens further?
2 – Does Alaska see a value in the new Boeing Sky Interior? Any plans to take delivery of new 737s with said interior?
3 – How does the new 737MAX line look to Alaska? Any thoughts on converting some of their outstanding orders into the MAX line?
4 – Are there any plans on replacing the 737-Combi fleet anytime soon? I ask because I don’t want to miss my chance to fly on one!
I’m fully aware they might not want to, or be able to answer these, but thanks for asking for our questions Brett.
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
1) Sorry – but I somehow missed this question and wasn’t able to ask. I’m sure they’re prepared if necessary.
2) Didn’t really say anything about the Sky interior
3) It’s early on MAX so the jury is out. They love big fuel savings, but it’s still early.
4) Nope. They did say that they are planning on what the replacement will be. Those 737-400 Combis have at least a few more years but probably won’t soldier on for decades.
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Written by Sanjeev M on September 9, 2011. Reply
I would like to know what new codeshares they might develop.
Would they codeshare with an Chinese or Taiwanese carrier at SEA (e.g. Hainan) or develop something at LAX?
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Written by David SF eastbay on September 9, 2011. Reply
Why do they still have a Eskimo on their plane? While their name may be Alaska, they fly to more places outside of the state. Do they still see the value of having a giant Eskimo head on their airplanes in Florida, Hawaii, Mexico, etc?
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
We had a long talk about the eskimo. It is something that has come up time and time again – starting with when they first pushed deeper south away from the Alaska origins. They say that the eskimo is an important part of what Alaska does. The state is very important to the airline and this represents that well. They also like the human face on the tail because it provides such a strong message about the airline being about people. I’ll write more about this in a post down the line.
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Written by Eric on September 9, 2011. Reply
Please ask them to go on record for their plans to remain a stand alone carrier. I know they have said it in several earnings calls…but I am curious about their biz plan going forward. Plus…I hope this puts an end to those $^# “when will AS merge with DL/AA/B6/HA/YV” threads on some other sites.
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Written by DesertGhost on September 9, 2011. Reply
Is there some special reason that Alaska (and Allegiant) can earn 10% + on invested capital when other traditional airlines can’t seem to?
Can other airlines (specifically the major legacies) match Alaska’s stellar financial performance?
What are the main philosophies, initiatives, policies, etc. that produce Alaska’s stellar returns?
In this world of mega mergers, is Alaska’s smaller size is an asset and why?
Is there a potential dowside to being smaller?
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Written by DesertGhost on September 9, 2011. Reply
I thought of another related question. Did Alaska’s management do anything special to encourage employee buy in?
Some of this was addressed at the Dahlman Rose conference last week (the potential downside of Alaska’s smaller size wasn’t), but as the analysts love to say, “could you provide some more color?”
Given the financial history of airlines, what Alaska is doing is nothing short of remarkable.
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Written by DesertGhost on September 9, 2011. Reply
Come to think about it, maybe these aren’t the best questions for a passenger experience expo. On the other hand, a good passenger experience can engender loyalty and contribute to the bottom line. The airlines that seem to perform the best financially also seem to be the best at delivering what they promise.
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
President Brad Tilden touched on this with the “small is beautiful” line during his talk at the conference. They like being small and nimble. They like being able to work with multiple partners if it makes sense. They have a very strong affinity for the Pacific Northwest, but they aren’t afraid of jumping on opportunities – like Hawai’i when Aloha and ATA went under. They simply have a very strict standard of what needs to happen to be profitable on plan. It’s probably a lot easier as well because they have a smaller more nimble network. It’s easier for them to move things around.
I’m sure they won’t comment on other airlines.
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Written by Frank on September 9, 2011. Reply
AS people will tell you that their plans for seat power have been the same for years: rather than make that investment and take on that weight, they’re going to wait for the market to catch up with longer-lived devices. And I’d say they’ve been right on that score. My wife’s MacBook Air will last for an entire Hawai’i or transcon flight, and my iPad 2 will almost last for a round-trip.
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Written by Sanjeev M on September 9, 2011. Reply
737′s definitely don’t have the range for SEA-Asia. They could codeshare with more international carriers like they do already.
I doubt a scissor hub in ANC or something would be possible let alone profitable.
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Written by Anon on September 9, 2011. Reply
Any plans to codeshare and frequent-flyer partnership with JAL? They already codeshare with most of the other oneworld (and Skyteam) airlines that have a significant presence in the Western US (e.g., AA, BA, LAN, Qantas, Cathay). It seems odd that JAL is not in the mix.
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Written by Frank on September 9, 2011. Reply
What are their expansion plans for Hawai’i? Is the general plan to continue to add new routes between their West Coast cities and all the islands? What about SFO and LAX?
What is their current thinking on expanding service to more cities in Mexico? What about Central America beyond Mexico? SJO? LIR?
It seems like it has been a while since they’ve added a new transcon flight. Any thoughts about further expansion to the East Coast?
Gold certs have become increasingly devalued over the past couple of years. They’re impossible to use to Hawai’i, nearly impossible on transcons, and only moderately useful on midcons. Do they plan on doing anything to correct this? Or to get rid of the certs? Or simply allow the current situation to continue?
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
They say that if they see a good reason to go into SFO and LAX, they will. I still think they just don’t want to go up against Delta and American there, but they certainly didn’t say that to be the case.
Didn’t really get much on Latin or East Coast.
I’ll touch more on the FF program in a post, but it doesn’t sound like there were any changes they were willing to talk about in the works.
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Written by Steve on September 9, 2011. Reply
I’d like to know if it is true that they are going to replace their 400 type aircraft with 900ER. If so, does that mean more direct flights to Lower 48 destinations from ANC, or will we still have to stop in SEA.
Someone asked about the Combi 400s. AS recently (within the last 5-6 years) replaced their 200 Combis with the 400, so I don’t think they’re going to go away any time soon; too valuable for in-state flying.
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Written by Eric in ICT on September 9, 2011. Reply
How about an update on their “airport terminal of the future” concept from a couple years back? They were trying to change the check-in and terminal experience, making it more open and modern. Has it been successful? Enjoy Seattle!
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Written by Tony on September 9, 2011. Reply
Any plans to introduce regional turboprop service into Mexico from LAX?
Most specifically Tijuana, Hermosillo, Chihuahua, and Los Mochis.Any plans to introduce service into Central America?
Most specifically El Salvador, Costa Rica and Belize.Why no Portland to Newark and/or Washington National?
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Written by John Matthewson on September 9, 2011. Reply
There is over 150 passengers going from Seattle to New Orleans everyday. It seems like the next logical nonstop for them. My business along with many others would benefit by this flight as I work in the oil industry. I work in the Gulf of Mexico and literally a day later I might be in the Gulf of Alaska. I’m not alone. These would be high last minute business fares for them.
Thanks Cranky.
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Written by Phygue on September 9, 2011. Reply
After the initial success of non-stops from Austin to Seattle, will there be more flights and destinations out of one of the fastest growing cities in the U.S. ?
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Written by David SF eastbay on September 9, 2011. Reply
Ask if the reason they codeshare with so many airlines is because they know their name hinders them since most of their flying is outside Alaska and people wouldn’t think to look at Alaska Airlines to fly around the lower 48/Mexico. Codesharing must get them more business then using their own name as people would think to check AA/DL/etc.
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
I don’t believe that has anything to do with it. The partner strategy is one they love because it helps them to provide an expanded network to their frequent fliers. They do what they do well, and they realize there are limitations to what they can and should be doing. The name has nothing to do with it – if it did, they wouldn’t have a ton of flights into Hawai’i.
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Written by Jim on September 9, 2011. Reply
To eliminate all the animosity and hard feelings between Alaska and Horizon why doesn’t Alaska just merge Horizon in with them and make everyone happy?
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Written by bill on September 9, 2011. Reply
There really aren’t any hard feelings or anything between Alaska and Horizon. Besides, they are owned by the same company and have absolutely no reason to merge.
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
I think Horizon in Alaska is one of those things that’s always talked about but we probably wouldn’t hear about it until (if) it actually happens. So, nothing to report here.
Also, Alaska also talked about the respect they have for Hawaiian as a competitor. Not sure that going into the interisland market would be the best plan.
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Written by Jim on September 9, 2011. Reply
Any truth to the rumor that AS is buying 14 of their own Q400s to use for interstate flying in Alaska. These will be owned and maintained by AS?
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Written by Chris on September 10, 2011. Reply
q400′s seem like a great fit for State of Alaska. Would work well for rural flying and may bring down the cost of travel with possiblity of increased frequency to destinations. I could really use more ‘shuttle’ type flight between ANC and FAI. The SE Alaska markets seem like they would work great as a hub operation out of Juneau/Sitka
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Written by Jiang on September 9, 2011. Reply
When will they have a new Mileage Plan Shopping partner/portal available? I have heard September, but maybe you can get more up to date information when? Thanks.
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Written by Michael on September 9, 2011. Reply
I would wonder if they would start service to Hilo as its only served by United at LAX and SFO from the mainland and with their increasing presence in Hawaii?
Also are they looking at more flights to Hawaii to compete with Allegiant when they begin Hawaii service eventually?
Are they going to expand more to the Midwest and East Coast routes?
Then are they considering the 737 Max?
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Written by Jan on September 9, 2011. Reply
Horizon service from LAX to Eugene and Medford OR has decreased over the last 4 years. No more nonstops. For Eugene no more no change of plane flights. Is the market so poor? Did Horizon really have to reduce service to allow Allegiant to get a foothold? Or does everyone just drive to their destination in CA or to Portland if they still fly?
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Written by Jim on September 11, 2011. Reply
Jan,
All of Horizon’s routes and scheduling is and has been set by Alaska airlines for some time now. I f we stop a certain flight or route it is their decision. -
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Written by Steve on September 10, 2011. Reply
Hi I’d love to know if the codeshare/interline agreement with V Australia is working well as well as do they have plans to introduce self checking for luggage and other technology innovations in the pipeline
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Written by Joan Hoberman on September 10, 2011. Reply
I don’t understand the “prayers” they leave with you on your tray with food service…what are they a right wing conservative fundamentalist, christian….makes it uncomfortable without knowing what their agenda is….don’t think they get too many atheists on their planes…don’t get me wrong, I’m all for prayers, just not from an airline..it’s not the business they are in or is it….what’s the point of it all or what was the point of it if they still do it?
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Written by CF on September 15, 2011. Reply
Great question. This one apparently was a marketing effort by a VP some 30 years ago or so. He thought it would make people feel better while flying, and it’s just stuck. It’s something that they do pay attention to, but for now, it just continues. Obviously, it’s no longer in coach since they don’t have meals but it’s still up front.
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Written by Greg McCarron on September 10, 2011. Reply
Do they have any plans for QX at SNA. They have them on the waiting list but seem to pass up the the service when they get a change. Please break up the continuous flow of Southwest in to the airport.
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Written by johnny0 on September 12, 2011. Reply
SFO-YVR prices skyrocketed when they pulled out a few years back. Any plans to move back in and take money from UA/AC?
Also, I’d love to see some competition on the SFO-YYJ route. UA charges $400-$700. I can almost get to Europe more cheaply than Victoria.
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Written by Itan2Much on September 13, 2011. Reply
Just returned to Maui from LAS/PDX/OGG route First Class. Any plans in updating their First Class seating? Need more incline and footrests for the 5 1/2 hour trip. Also, an upgrade on their food would be nice.
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