Alaska Air Group Reports February Traffic

Alaska Air Group, Inc. today reported February operational results for its subsidiaries, Alaska Airlines (Alaska) and Horizon Air (Horizon).

ALASKA AIRLINES

Alaska reported an increase in load factor to 79.8 percent in February 2010, compared to 73.5 percent in February 2009, on a 2.4 percent decrease in available seat miles (ASMs) compared to the prior-year period. Alaska also reported that 86.2 percent of its flights arrived on time in February 2010, a 9.9-point increase compared to the 76.3 percent reported in February 2009. The following tables show the operational results for February 2010 and for the first two months of 2010, compared to the prior-year periods:

                                    February              Year-to-Date
                                    --------              ------------
                             2010     2009   Change   2010    2009    Change
                             ----     ----   ------   ----    ----    ------
  Revenue passenger miles
   RPMs (000,000)           1,350    1,274     5.9%   2,823   2,619     7.8%
  Available seat miles
   ASMs (000,000)           1,692    1,733   (2.4)%   3,588   3,610   (0.6)%
  Passenger load factor     79.8%    73.5%   6.3pts   78.7%   72.6%   6.1pts
  Revenue passengers (000)  1,106    1,096     0.9%   2,290   2,229     2.7%
  On-time arrivals as
   reported to U.S. DOT     86.2%    76.3%   9.9pts   86.0%   73.8%  12.2pts

  HORIZON AIR

Horizon reported an increase in load factor to 72.2 percent in February 2010, compared to 67.2 percent in February 2009. Horizon also reported that 89.0 percent of its flights arrived on time in February 2010, a 2.7-point increase compared to the 86.3 percent reported in February 2009. The following tables show the operational results for February 2010 and for the first two months of 2010, compared to the prior-year periods:

                                 February                 Year-to-Date
                                 --------                 ------------
                            2010   2009    Change    2010     2009   Change
                            ----   ----    ------    ----     ----   ------
  RPMs (000,000)             178    166       7.3%    362      333     8.9%
  ASMs (000,000)             246    246         -     515      511     0.6%
  Passenger load factor    72.2%  67.2%    5.0pts   70.4%    65.1%   5.3pts
  Revenue passengers (000)   496    487      1.7%   1,018      989     3.0%
  On-time arrivals         89.0%  86.3%    2.7pts   87.7%    78.6%   9.1pts
  ----------------         ----   ----     ------   ----     ----    ------

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group , together serve more than 90 cities through an expansive network in Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. Alaska Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Network Carriers" in the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 and 2009 North America Airline Satisfaction Studies(SM). For reservations, visit alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at alaskaair.com/newsroom.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact: maria.koenig@alaskaair.com

SOURCE: Alaska Airlines