Alaska Air Group Reports July Traffic

Alaska Air Group, Inc. today reported July passenger traffic for its subsidiaries, Alaska Airlines (Alaska) and Horizon Air (Horizon).

ALASKA AIRLINES

Alaska’s July traffic decreased 2.2 percent to 1.788 billion revenue passenger miles (RPMs) from 1.828 billion flown a year earlier. Capacity during July was 2.244 billion available seat miles (ASMs), 2.4 percent higher than the 2.191 billion in July 2007.

The passenger load factor (the percentage of available seats occupied by fare-paying passengers) for the month was 79.7 percent, compared to 83.4 percent in July 2007. The airline carried 1,617,800 passengers, compared to 1,734,800 in July 2007.

RPMs for the seven-month period totaled 11.186 billion, a 4.4 percent increase from the 10.714 billion recorded a year earlier. Capacity for the seven months ended July 2008 increased 3.9 percent to 14.566 billion ASMs, compared to 14.025 billion in 2007.

The passenger load factor for the first seven months of 2008 was 76.8 percent, compared to 76.4 percent in 2007. The airline carried 10,122,900 passengers, compared to 10,224,200 in 2007.

Alaska reported that 79.9 percent of its domestic flights arrived within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival times during the month of July 2008, an 11.8-point improvement from the 68.1 percent reported for July 2007. This is the airline’s best on-time performance in the last five years and the second-best in the past 10 years, capping a steady improvement trend in 2008. On a year-to-date basis, Alaska reported domestic on-time performance of 78.2 percent in 2008, compared to 72.8 percent in 2007.

HORIZON AIR

Horizon’s July traffic decreased 11.7 percent to 259.8 million RPMs from 294.2 million flown a year earlier. Capacity for July was 336.3 million ASMs, 8.8 percent lower than the 368.8 million in July 2007.

The passenger load factor for the month was 77.3 percent, compared to 79.8 percent in July 2007. The airline carried 705,000 passengers, compared to 731,700 in July 2007.

RPMs for the seven-month period totaled 1.613 billion, a 2.4 percent decrease from the 1.652 billion recorded a year earlier. Capacity for the seven months ended July 2008 decreased 2.0 percent to 2.222 billion ASMs, compared to 2.267 billion in 2007.

The passenger load factor for the first seven months of 2008 was 72.6 percent, compared to 72.9 percent in 2007. The airline carried 4,470,400 passengers, compared to 4,249,700 in 2007.

Horizon reported that 86.3 percent of its domestic flights arrived within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival times during the month of July 2008, compared to 77.9 percent in July 2007.

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air together serve 95 cities through an expansive network throughout Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. For reservations visit http://www.alaskaair.com/. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at http://www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

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

SOURCE: Alaska Air Group, Inc.