Alaska Air Group Reports September Traffic

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

ALASKA AIRLINES

Alaska reported an increase in load factor to 77.9 percent in September 2009, compared to 75.8 percent in September 2008, on a 1.4 percent decline in available seat miles (ASMs) compared to the prior-year period. Alaska also reported that 90.0 percent of its flights arrived on time in September 2009, capping off the strongest third quarter operational performance in the airline’s history. The following tables show the operational results for September 2009 and for the first nine months of 2009, compared to the prior-year periods:

                                  September               Year-to-Date
                                  ---------               ------------
                            2009     2008   Change    2009    2008    Change
                            ----     ----   ------    ----    ----    ------
  Revenue passenger miles
   RPMs (000,000)          1,450    1,430      1.4%  13,812  14,410   (4.1)%
  Available seat  miles
   ASMs (000,000)          1,862    1,888    (1.4)%  17,469  18,628   (6.2)%
  Passenger load factor    77.9%    75.8%    2.1pts   79.1%   77.4%   1.7pts
  Revenue passengers (000) 1,235    1,295    (4.7)%  11,796  13,037   (9.5)%
  On-time arrivals as
   reported
   to U.S. DOT             90.0%    87.8%    2.2pts   81.9%   79.3%   2.6pts
   -----------              ----     ----    ------    ----    ----   ------

  HORIZON AIR

Horizon reported an increase in load factor to 73.7 percent in September 2009, compared to 72.6 percent in September 2008, on a 2.6 percent decline in capacity compared to the prior-year period. Horizon reported that 91.3 percent of its flights arrived on time in September 2009, a 0.3-point decrease compared to the 91.6 percent reported in September 2008. The following tables show the operational results for September 2009 and for the first nine months of 2009, compared to the prior-year periods:

                               September                 Year-to-Date
                               ---------                 ------------
                         2009    2008    Change     2009      2008   Change
                         ----    ----    ------     ----      ----   ------
  RPMs (000,000)          199     201     (1.1)%   1,799     2,074   (13.3)%
  ASMs (000,000)          270     277     (2.6)%   2,470     2,831   (12.8)%
  Passenger load factor 73.7%   72.6%     1.1pts   72.8%     73.3%  (0.5)pts
  Revenue passengers
   (000)                  556     584     (4.9)%   5,055     5,754   (12.1)%
  On-time arrivals      91.3%   91.6%   (0.3)pts   86.4%     85.1%    1.3pts
  ----------------      ----    ----    --------   ----      ----     ------

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 2008 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 Air Group