From shaking up its West Coast hubs to charting a brand new path as a world airline, it is a time of huge change for Alaska Airways.
In simply over a yr since buying Hawaiian Airways, the Seattle-based service has debuted its new mixed Atmos Rewards loyalty program and rolled out a premium bank card. It has launched Asia service from its Seattle-Tacoma Worldwide Airport (SEA) residence base, and merged its operation with Hawaiian’s.
And there are many modifications nonetheless to return. London, Rome and Iceland flights start in 2026 — as will the first-ever service on Alaska-branded twin-aisle planes.
What else may very well be on the horizon?
Earlier this yr, TPG had the prospect to sit down down with Alaska Air Group’s high community planner to speak routes, hubs and stiff competitors within the Pacific Northwest.
This is what we realized.
Loyalty and connections driving San Diego, Portland push
Alaska made one factor actually clear final month when it added 13 new routes and slashed seven from its West Coast hubs: The service is clearly bullish on San Diego Worldwide Airport (SAN) and Oregon’s Portland Worldwide Airport (PDX).
Throughout the first half of 2026, Alaska’s complete departures from SAN can be up a whopping 50% in contrast with 2025, in response to knowledge from aviation analytics agency Cirium.
They’re going to be up 14% yr over yr out of PDX.
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What’s behind that push?
In Portland, it is about changing into a real connecting hub, with many extra one-stop itinerary choices than ever earlier than, mentioned Kirsten Amrine, vice chairman of income administration and community planning.
“What I am actually enthusiastic about there,” Amrine defined, “is simply what number of new ‘connect-the-dots’ we have been in a position to do.”
In the meantime, in San Diego, the airline has seen robust numbers from its loyalty program (now Atmos Rewards), together with cobranded bank card sign-ups.
“We see actually good bank card returns from company down there,” Amrine mentioned.
Airways view each as an indication of brand name power and a sign that including extra flights may very well be a worthwhile funding.
“As we have put capability into these markets,” Amrine added, “it is responded very nicely.”
Not only a West Coast airline
Elsewhere, Alaska believes that its more and more international route community is attracting extra prospects from nicely past its conventional strongholds in California and the Pacific Northwest.
In any case, now you can board an Alaska Airways airplane in Raleigh, North Carolina; Tampa; or Pittsburgh and attain Japan or South Korea in a single cease — with out ever setting foot on a companion’s plane.
That reality, Amrine mentioned, has broadened the enchantment of an airline that traditionally catered most to vacationers on the West Coast.
“It isn’t simply folks coming from Portland and Victoria [in British Columbia] and locations which are extra in our wheelhouse,” Amrine mentioned. “It is positively coming from east of the Rockies as nicely.”
There could also be extra to it than simply geographic enchantment, too.
Alaska continues to supply a number of the best-value mileage redemptions of U.S. airways, together with on companions like American Airways. Meaning even passengers who do not usually fly Alaska have discovered worth in its Atmos Rewards program, boosting the nationwide relevancy of the nation’s fifth-largest service.
Learn extra: Alaska Airways’ invaluable factors — and award chart — survive Atmos Rewards
Defending its residence turf
All of Alaska’s latest strikes have mixed to generate loads of buzz in its hometown. They’ve additionally seemingly reignited a long-simmering turf conflict within the Pacific Northwest with one in all its high rivals.
Shortly after Alaska this summer season introduced its first European path to Rome, high Sea Tac competitor Delta Air Strains responded with its personal European enlargement from the airport — together with flights to the Everlasting Metropolis.
The transfer was harking back to the extremely aggressive early days of Delta making Seattle a hub, when the 2 carriers typically duked it out for market share within the area.
“We anticipated that,” Amrine mentioned of Delta’s strikes.
“However the place we sit is, we are the hometown service,” she continued. “And we anticipate that over time, as we’ve got a bigger worldwide portfolio, we see the chance simply to win again a lot of the journey that we have misplaced to Delta as a result of we [previously] did not have that.”
We must always be aware: Delta additionally not too long ago bolstered its premium recreation at SEA with a spiffy new Delta One Lounge and Sky Membership.
Speaking Hawaiian and Honolulu
Let’s speak Hawaiian Airways.
Alaska’s international ambitions have fueled maybe the splashiest headlines for the reason that two carriers’ merger final yr.
However there’s loads of information on the horizon for Hawaiian, which continues to function as a definite model.
As TPG has beforehand reported:
- Each Hawaiian’s new and nonetheless yet-to-be-delivered Boeing 787 Dreamliners will begin flying as Alaska-branded planes in 2026, that includes an all-new international livery.
- Hawaiian at the moment operates Alaska Air Group’s Asia routes from Seattle. However these will finally grow to be Alaska-branded flights.
- Hawaiian’s older Airbus A330s will stay a staple of its long-haul community, however the service will give these planes a much-needed cabin improve within the coming years — together with premium economic system.
Past that?
You would possibly see some Boeing 737 planes painted with Hawaiian livery sooner or later: Finally, Amrine expects practically all of Alaska Air Group’s flights to and from the Aloha State can be on Hawaiian-branded plane.
“We have been clear that for flying inside or to [or] from the state of Hawaii, that may have the Hawaiian livery on it,” she mentioned. “We simply want to determine what planes can we wish to paint to have the appropriate subfleets.”
Headed to Sydney or Tokyo? Attempt connecting in Hawaii
Lastly, I requested about the way forward for Hawaiian’s worldwide community. Keep in mind, Hawaiian serves a spread of transpacific locations from its residence state: Sydney, Auckland, Tokyo and Seoul, South Korea, amongst them.
Within the quick time period, Amrine would not anticipate new worldwide Hawaiian routes. As a substitute, she mentioned the service is targeted on integrating the Alaska and Hawaiian networks to help its new long-haul flying.
She believes extra vacationers will go for a connection in Honolulu as an alternative of the West Coast on their approach to Australia, New Zealand or Asia — all locations Hawaiian serves from Daniel Okay. Inouye Worldwide Airport (HNL).
“If you happen to draw a line from Seattle to Sydney it mainly goes over Hawaii,” she mentioned. “There’s individuals who could desire to attach in Hawaii versus down in L.A. It is mainly essentially the most direct route that you would be able to get.”
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