Tag Archives: Anchorage

Alaska Air Group rates its environmental performance in the third annual sustainability report

Alaska Air Group (Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air (Seattle/Tacoma) has issued is Third Annual Sustainability Report for 2014 where it has decreased its emissions by 30 percent over the past 10 years. Here is the statement:

Alaska Air Group, the parent company of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, has reduced its mainline flying emissions intensity by one-third over the last 10 years through fleet advancements and flight technology. These advances have avoided burning 531 million gallons of fuel since 2004 — the equivalent of taking one million cars off the road for a year.

Additionally, Air Group reported record financial results, enabling it to invest in local communities and strengthen the long-term future of its workforce.

This is among a series of goals and accomplishments highlighted in Alaska Air Group’s newly-released 2014 Sustainability Report, which summarizes the company’s progress on environmental, social and economic goals. The complete report is available online at www.alaskaair.com/sustainability.

“Beyond our basic commitment as a company to provide safe, reliable and affordable transportation, we are focused on ensuring our business goals are in balance with the needs of our communities,” said Alaska Air Group CEO Brad Tilden. “We have made great strides in the last year to embed sustainability into every level of our business.”

Above: Alaska Airlines. The keys to the 2020 Sustainability Strategy.

Below are highlights of the airline’s accomplishments in 2014:

Planet

2,200 tons of material was collected for recycling inflight (enough plastic bottles to re-carpet Portland International Airport 29 times–#pdxcarpet)

47 Boeing 737 jets received new winglets, reducing emissions by 500 metric tons per aircraft per year (equivalent to driving around the earth 2,329 times)

Over 200 new electric vehicles were installed at Sea-Tac Airport, nearly doubling Air Group’s electric ground service fleet

Although Air Group’s total emissions increased from 2013 to 2014 as the airline’s traffic increased 6.5 percent, its emissions intensity decreased by 2 percent (as measured per revenue passenger mile).

People

The average wage of Air Group’s more than 13,000 employees ($69,044) is 23 percent higher than the regional average

82 percent of employees reported overall positive engagement, up from 79 percent in 2013
Over $9.6 million donated by Air Group, supporting more than 1,300 community organizations

Performance

16 new routes added, while still lowering non-fuel unit costs by 1.3 percent
Alaska is one of only two U.S. airlines with investment grade credit ratings

Copyright Photo below: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com (all other images by Alaska Airlines). Boeing 737-890 N581AS (msn 35188) arrives at Anchorage.

Alaska Airlines aircraft slide show:

Alaska Air Cargo delivers the first Copper River Salmon to Seattle for the new season

Alaska Airlines (Seattle/Tacoma) announced the opening of the annual Copper Riser Salmon fishing season and the first delivery to SeaTac by Alaska Air Cargo. Here is the announcement:

Alaska (2014) logo

A fish-filled Alaska Airlines jet touched down at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport shortly after 6 a.m. today, carrying 18,000 pounds of wild Alaska Copper River salmon — about 4,500 more pounds than the weight of a Learjet 31. A second plane carrying an additional 30,000 pounds is scheduled to arrive in Seattle around 10:20 a.m. Today officially marks the start of the salmon season that is anticipated by seafood lovers throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond.

Above Photo: Alaska Airlines. The fishing fleet off of Cordova, Alaska.

Alaska Airlines will operate up to five more flights today transporting the coveted Copper River salmon caught for three seafood processors: Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Trident Seafoods and Copper River Seafoods. The extra Copper River salmon flights will depart Cordova, Alaska, and arrive in Seattle and Anchorage, Alaska, where the fish will be shipped throughout the Pacific Northwest and across the United States today and through the weekend.

Above Photo: Alaska Airlines.

Alaska plays a significant role in supporting the Alaska seafood industry, which is recognized worldwide for its sustainable fishing practices. The carrier flew nearly 25 million pounds of fresh Alaska seafood to the Lower 48 states and beyond last year, including nearly 1.2 million pounds of Copper River salmon.

Top Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-890 N559AS (msn 35178) in the unique “Wild Alaska Seafood” livery and named “Salmon-Thirty-Salmon 2” arrives in Washington (Reagan National).

Alaska Airlines aircraft slide show:

Bottom Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Dedicated freighter, Boeing 737-490 (F) N709AS (msn 28896) lands in Anchorage, Alaska.

Great videos from Alaska Airlines:

Alaska Airlines to charge extra for bulkhead and exit row seats

Alaska Airlines (Seattle/Tacoma) has also decided to charge extra for the bulkhead and exit row seats. The airline issued this statement:

Customers who like a little extra legroom now have more choices when flying Alaska Airlines, with the launch of Preferred Plus seating. Starting today, the bulkhead and exit row seats will be available to all customers for paid upgrades after Mileage Plan MVP, MVP Gold and MVP Gold 75k members have had an opportunity to reserve them.

Preferred Plus upgrades begin at $15 plus tax, and include a complimentary cocktail or glass of wine or beer, up to eight inches of extra legroom and priority boarding. Upgrades for rows 6, 16 and 17 can be purchased within 24 hours before check-in at http://www.alaskaair.com, through the Alaska Airlines mobile apps and at the airport, when available. Previously, only Mileage Plan elite-level customers had access to reserve these seats. Upgrades for elites are, and will continue to be, complimentary from the time of booking through departure.

Copyright Photo below: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com (all others by Alaska Airlines). Boeing 737-890 N564AS (msn 35103) approaches the runway at Anchorage.

Alaska Airlines aircraft slide show:

UPS reports 1Q earnings per share were up 14%

United Parcel Service-UPS (UPS Airlines) (Atlanta and Louisville) reported first quarter net income of $1.03 billion.

Here is the full financial announcement:

UPS announced first quarter 2015 diluted earnings per share of $1.12, a 14% increase over the prior year period. Operating profit increased 11% to $1.7 billion, with all three segments contributing. Revenue management actions and robust International shipment growth drove the operating profit improvement.

Total reported revenue of $14.0 billion was up 1.4% over the same quarter last year. Revenue growth was 3.6% after adjusting for foreign currency changes.

“The first quarter results were favorably impacted by our continued investments and revenue management initiatives,” said David Abney, UPS chief executive officer. “These actions delivered high value to our customers and shareowners. We are on track to achieve the company’s long-term financial targets.”

Total company shipments increased 2.8% to 1.1 billion packages, led by European export growth of 9.4%.

Cash Flow

For the three months ended March 31, UPS generated $2.4 billion in free cash flow. The company paid dividends of $636 million, an increase of 9.0% per share over the prior year. The company also repurchased more than 6.7 million shares for approximately $680 million.
U.S. Domestic Package

U.S. Domestic first quarter revenue increased 3.8% to $8.8 billion. Daily package volume improved 2.4%, lifted by growth in Deferred Air, up 12% and UPS SurePost, up 7.0%. Shipment growth rates slowed, as the company chose not to pursue some lower-yielding contract renewals.

Total revenue per package was up 1.3% primarily due to UPS Ground yield increasing 3.1%. Base rate improvements more than offset an approximately 200 basis point drag from lower fuel surcharges. The expansion of dim-weight pricing, implemented last December 29, also contributed to higher yields.

Operating profit increased to $1.0 billion, an 11% improvement from the prior-year period. Operating margin expanded 70 basis points, driven by productivity gains.
International Package

International operating profit was $498 million, up 14% over the prior-year period. Volume growth, pricing initiatives and lower fuel expense all contributed to improved profitability. Operating margin expanded 280 basis points to 16.8%.

Total International revenue of $3.0 billion, increased 2.4% for the quarter on a currency-neutral basis, compared to the reported decline of 5.0%. Lower fuel surcharges also weighed on revenue growth.

Worldwide Export yield contracted 5.2% on a currency-neutral basis, with the majority of the decline due to an approximately 300 basis point reduction in fuel surcharge revenue. Product mix changes and stronger intra-regional shipment growth also contributed to the lower yield.
Export shipments jumped 6.7% led by European growth of 9.4%. In Europe, UPS Export volume has grown at an annual rate of approximately 9% over the past 10 years.

Supply Chain & Freight

Revenue in the segment increased 1.3% to $2.2 billion, driven by growth in Distribution and UPS Freight. Revenue growth was lowered by currency exchange rates and reduced fuel surcharge revenue. Operating margin expanded to 6.9%, generating operating profit of $151 million.

Although Forwarding revenue declined due to currency changes and revenue management actions, profitability was improved over the same period last year. Congestion at the West Coast port terminals created challenges for many Ocean Freight customers. The flexibility of the UPS portfolio allowed customers to accelerate their ocean freight or reroute to non-affected ports.

The Distribution business delivered solid top-line growth as more customers in the Healthcare and Retail industries realized the benefits of UPS supply-chain expertise. Operating profit and margin was limited by continued investments in technology and infrastructure.

UPS Freight revenue was up 2.3% resulting from gains in LTL and Ground Freight Pricing products. Lower fuel surcharges weighed on the revenue growth rate. LTL shipments per day increased 3.5% over the prior-year period.

Outlook

“Solid performance across all three business segments was led by positive momentum in International, gains from revenue management and productivity improvements in the U.S.,” said Kurt Kuehn, UPS chief financial officer. “We remain on plan to meet our guidance for full-year 2015 diluted earnings per share of $5.05 to $5.30, a 6%-to-12% increase over our 2014 adjusted results.”

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 767-34AF N346UP (msn 37868) approaches the runway at Anchorage.

UPS Airlines aircraft slide show:

Korean Air finalizes its order for five additional Boeing 777F freighters

Boeing (Chicago, Seattle and Charleston) and Korean Air (Seoul) have finalized an order for five 777 Freighters. Korean Air currently operates an all-Boeing freighter fleet of 26 airplanes that includes 17 747-400 Freighters, five 747-8 Freighters and four 777 Freighters.

Korea’s flag carrier currently operates 86 Boeing passenger airplanes and has unfilled orders for nearly 40 additional airplanes, including 12 777-300ERs, 10 747-8 Intercontinentals, 10 787-9 Dreamliners, two 747-8 Freighters and six 777 Freighters.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 777-FB5 HL8251 (msn 37639) is beautifully captured landing at Anchorage.

Korean Air aircraft slide show:

Southern Air retires its last Boeing 747

Southern Air (2nd) (Cincinnati) has retired its last Boeing 747 freighter. According to ch-aviation, the former World Airways Boeing 747-412 (F) N743WA (msn 26562) was retired to Marana, Arizona on February 3.

Previously Southern Air retired its last Boeing 747-200F freighter (N783SA) on January 5, 2013.

Southern Air streamlined its fleet as part of its Chapter 11 reorganization.

Southern Air now operates a fleet of four Boeing 777F freighters and four 737-400 freighters mainly for DHL.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Sister ship Boeing 747-4EVF ER N558CL (msn 35171) lands at Anchorage.

Southern Air aircraft slide shows:

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-3/Airlines-United-States3-QZ/Southern-Air-2

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/DHL-Southern-Air-2nd

Alaska Airlines to continue to offer its new premium inflight entertainment free for two more months

Alaska Airlines (Seattle/Tacoma) today announced it will continue to offer free premium inflight entertainment directly to customers’ personal electronic devices for two more months, in addition to the more than 100 titles of free content that are available all the time, to all passengers, as part of the new Alaska Beyond™ experience.

Above Photo: Alaska Airlines.

All content, including premium movies and TV shows, will be complimentary through March 31, 2015. Starting April 1, customers can still enjoy free access to a wide selection of complimentary custom curated content and purchase premium movies and TV shows starting at $1.99.

The new entertainment service is available today on more than half of Alaska’s mainline aircraft and will be equipped on nearly all of Alaska’s all-Boeing fleet by April 2015.

Additionally, beginning February 1, Alaska will also introduce new Inflight Entertainment tablets powered by Microsoft. The tablets will be available to rent on long-haul flights for $8-10 and will feature movies, TV, XBOX games, music, digital magazines, and easy Internet access on WiFi-equipped flights. The rentable tablets will continue to be offered at no charge to First Class customers and MVP Gold75Ks.

Last month, Alaska debuted its new flight experience, ‘Alaska Beyond.’ In addition to the new, free inflight entertainment offerings, Alaska Beyond features delicious, locally sourced food and beverages, comfortable Recaro leather seats and personal power at every seat.

Top Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Alaska Airlines continues to replace its older Boeing 737-400s which are still due to be retired by the end of 2017.

Alaska Airlines aircraft slide show:

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Alaska-Airlines

Alaska Air Group to reward its employees with a 9%+ bonus

Alaska Air Group (Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air) (Seattle/Tacoma) had a good financial year in 2014. The group is now rewarding its employees and has issued this statement:

Employees at Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air are receiving annual bonuses today of more than 9 percent of their annual pay, or more than five weeks’ pay for most workers. The bonus is in addition to the approximately $1,000 in 2014 monthly bonuses that most employees earned for achieving on-time and customer satisfaction goals.

The combined monthly and annual bonuses amounted to nearly $116 million, the highest in Alaska’s history, and are part of the company’s incentive-based pay program.

“We’re really excited to reward our employees for all the great work they’ve done this year,” said Tammy Young, Alaska Airlines’ vice president of human resources. “This is the sixth year in a row Alaska and Horizon employees have exceeded their payout targets for performance-based pay.”

Nearly $51 million in annual bonuses — 55 percent of the total — is being paid to nearly 6,000 Alaska and Horizon employees in the Puget Sound area. Another $12 million is being paid to 2,122 employees in the Portland, Oregon, area, while $9 million is going to workers throughout the state of Alaska.

Bonuses in Alaska Air Group’s Performance Based Pay Plan are determined by meeting specific company-wide goals for safety, customer satisfaction, cost control and profit that are approved annually by the board of directors. Since the inception of the program in 2003, Alaska has paid employees $624 million in combined incentive-based pay and monthly bonuses.

As part of its philosophy to provide employees with rewarding careers and good retirement benefits, Alaska Air Group has contributed $620 million over the past 6 years to its defined benefit pension plans, which were fully funded in 2013.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-990 ER N469AS (msn 41702) prepares to land in Anchorage.

Alaska Airlines aircraft slide show:

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Alaska-Airlines

Horizon Air converts two Bombardier Q400 options into firm orders

Horizon Air Industries, Inc. (Horizon Air) (Alaska Horizon) (Seattle/Tacoma) has converted two of seven previously acquired Bombardier DHC-8-402 (marketed as the Q400 NextGen) aircraft options to firm orders. The airline retains its options on another five Q400 NextGen aircraft. Horizon Air and its sister carrier, Alaska Airlines are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group.

Horizon Air’s Q400 aircraft are equipped with Head-up Guidance Systems (HGS) for all-weather operations, Wide Area Augmentation Systems (WAAS) with approach guidance (LPV) for ILS-like landing minima at remote runways and RNP AR 0.1 to fly curved approaches to airports in difficult terrain.

Established in 1981, Horizon Air was acquired in 1986 by Alaska Air Group, Inc., the parent company of Alaska Airlines. At its start, the airline operated two aircraft and served three destinations in Washington state. Today, Horizon flies its 76-seat Q400 aircraft on behalf of Alaska Airlines and serves 43 cities in the western United States, Canada and Mexico. Horizon Air, which is also a codeshare partner of American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, operates both the longest (Seattle to Fresno, 748 miles/1,204 km) and shortest (Pullman to Lewiston, 26 miles/42 km) turboprop routes currently being served by regional carriers in the U.S.

In 2014, Bombardier and Horizon Air signed a five-year heavy maintenance agreement whereby Bombardier will perform heavy maintenance tasks for the airline’s fleet of Q400 aircraft at Bombardier’s service center in Tuscon, Arizona.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Bombardier DHC-8-402 (Q400) N448QX (msn 4409) arrives in Anchorage, Alaska.

Alaska Horizon aircraft slide show:

http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Alaska-Horizon-Horizon-Air

JetBlue Airways announces new routes from Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood, Cleveland, Detroit and Portland, OR

JetBlue Airways (New York) announced additional service from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL), where it is the largest airline. Nonstop flights to both Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE) and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) will begin on April 30, 2015. The announcement comes on top of the seven nonstop routes launched by JetBlue from its South Florida focus city last year. JetBlue currently offers up to 74 daily flights to 33 destinations from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood and its plan is to grow to 100 daily flights by 2017 to meet the increasing customer demand in South Florida for JetBlue’s high-quality experience.

The airline added Detroit to its route map in March 2014, with nonstop service from its Boston focus city, and Cleveland will become JetBlue’s 88th destination on April 30, also with flights from Boston.

In other news, JetBlue Airways also announced additional service at Portland International Airport (PDX) in Oregon, with new nonstop service to Anchorage, Alaska’s Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) for the upcoming summer season.

The new route will operate daily between June 18 and September 8, 2015, and will be JetBlue’s fourth nonstop destination from Portland, where the airline offers flights to Boston, New York/JFK and Long Beach, Calif. in the Los Angeles area. From Anchorage, JetBlue offers nonstop summer seasonal service to Long Beach and Seattle/Tacoma.

The new routes will be operated by a 150-seat Airbus A320s.

Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A320-232 N565JB (msn 2031) in the new Tartan tail design prepares to depart from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

JetBlue Airways aircraft slide show: