Alaska Airlines Tops J.D. Power and Associates Customer Satisfaction Rankings for Third Year in a Row Among Traditional Network Carriers in North America

Alaska Airlines was ranked highest in airline customer satisfaction among traditional network carriers for the third consecutive year by J.D. Power and Associates in its 2010 North America Airline Satisfaction Study(SM). The airline also topped J.D. Power and Associates’ annual rankings in 2008 and 2009.

"Receiving this honor for the third year in a row is a testament to not only our operational focus on running a safe, efficient, on-time airline, but also to our talented and dedicated employees, who have continually worked to deliver on our customer promises," Alaska’s President Brad Tilden said.

Alaska Airlines ranked high in six of the study’s seven measures, including boarding/deplaning/baggage service and fees. Alaska is the only U.S. carrier to offer a Baggage Service Guarantee, after implementing baggage service fees last year. Learn more about Alaska’s Baggage Service Guarantee online at http://bit.ly/ncl8k.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2010 North America Airline Satisfaction Study(SM) is based on responses from more than 12,300 passengers who flew on a major North American airline between April 2009 and April 2010. The study measures overall customer satisfaction based on performance in seven measures (in order of importance): cost and fees; flight crew; in-flight services; aircraft; boarding/deplaning/baggage; check-in; and reservation. Traditional network carriers are defined as airlines that operate multicabin aircraft and use multiple airport hubs.

About Alaska Airlines

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. For reservations, visit alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at alaskaair.com/newsroom.

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, Web intelligence and customer satisfaction. The company’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information, please visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

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

SOURCE: Alaska Airlines