Originally Posted by alaskaair.com/newsroom

SEATTLE, April 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Airlines and Virgin America today announces new daily, nonstop service between Portland, Oregon, and New York's John F. Kennedy Airport (JFK) beginning Nov. 6; Portland and Detroit beginning Aug. 30; and Los Angeles and Philadelphia beginning Sept. 1.

Alaska Airlines and Virgin America add new routes from Portland, Oregon and Los Angeles

"Alaska Airlines continues to expand service from our West Coast hubs by adding convenient, nonstop flights to popular destinations like New York City, Philadelphia and Detroit," said John Kirby, vice president of capacity planning at Alaska Airlines. "Whether traveling for business or leisure, we continue to meet the needs of our valued guests with more than 800 daily flights in over 300 markets originating from the West Coast."

With this new service, Alaska and Virgin America will provide Portland residents access to 130 daily nonstop flights to 58 destinations, more than any other carrier serving Portland International Airport.

This added service provides Rose City flyers greater access to two New York metropolitan area airports – JFK and Newark. JFK is the country's busiest international gateway, and is a prime jumping off point for customers traveling to Europe and beyond on Alaska Global Partners including British Airways, Icelandair and Condor. Members of the Alaska Mileage Plan can earn and redeem miles when flying on one of Alaska's global airline partners to over 900 destinations around the globe.

With the new service to Detroit, Alaska Airlines will offer the only daily, year-round nonstop service from Portland to the Motor City, home to auto industry giants such as General Motors and Ford Motor Company. Guests will now have access to low fare options, with the reliability and award-winning customer service they have come to expect from their go-to airline on the West Coast.

The new Los Angeles-Philadelphia flight builds on the 27 new markets the combined airline has added from California, since merging with Virgin America in December. Virgin America previously served this market from April 2012 to October 2014.

Schedule of new service:

Start Date
City pair
Departs
Arrives
Aircraft
Frequency
Aug 30
Portland-Detroit
10:30 p.m.
5:30 a.m.
B737
Daily
Aug 31
Detroit-Portland
7 a.m.
8:45 a.m.
B737
Daily
Sep 1
Los Angeles-Philadelphia
8:45 p.m.
5 a.m.
A320 family
Daily
Sep 2
Philadelphia-Los Angeles
6:30 a.m.
9:26 a.m.
A320 family
Daily
Nov 6
Portland-New York (JFK)
11:05 p.m.
7:30 a.m.
B737
Daily
Nov 7
New York (JFK)-Portland
9:30 a.m.
12:55 p.m.
B737
Daily
Flight times based on local time zones.

To purchase tickets, visit alaskaair.com to find great savings, or call 1-800-ALASKAAIR (800-252-7522 for Hearing & Speech Impaired (TTY): Dial 711 for Relay Services). To purchase tickets between Los Angeles and Philadelphia on Virgin America, visit virginamerica.com or call 1-877-FLY-VIRGIN (877-359-8474).

Editor's note: High-definition, broadcast quality footage of Alaska Airlines and Virgin America is available for download at https://ascorpcomm.sharefile.com/d-sadfdde4d49545f4a.

Alaska Airlines, together with Virgin America and its regional partners, flies 40 million customers a year to 118 destinations with an average of 1,200 daily flights across the United States and to Mexico, Canada, Costa Rica and Cuba. With Alaska and Alaska Global Partners, customers can earn and redeem miles on flights to more than 900 destinations worldwide. Alaska Mileage Plan ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Airline Loyalty Rewards Programs" in the J.D. Power Airline Loyalty/Rewards Program Satisfaction Report for the last three consecutive years. Learn more about Alaska's award-winning service and unmatched reliability at newsroom.alaskaair.com and blog.alaskaair.com. Alaska Airlines, Virgin America and Horizon Air are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK).



SOURCE Alaska Airlines

Originally Posted by beckoa

Excitin' times!

Originally Posted by jrl767

I sure wouldn't call the 0500 arrival into PHL "excitin' "

Originally Posted by aroundtheworld76

That being said, folks aren't gonna be connecting to BA, FI or DE with an 0730 JFK arrival.

Originally Posted by jrl767

I'm actually ok with those sunrise departures for westbound trips, but that's just me ... not so enthusiastic about TCONs from SEA/PDX/LAX though

Originally Posted by Jimgotkp

I agree. I don't mind having to wake up at 4AM if I really have to. However, those overnight transcons in recliners are just awful. (and no, I would never want to fly this route in Y)

Originally Posted by ucdtim17

If you're east coast based, it's fine. If you're west coast based and just visiting for a short trip, 4 am wakeup is really 1 am wakeup - no thanks. Redeyes suck, but if you have limited time and want to maximize your time on the east coast, they're good for that.

Originally Posted by eponymous_coward

AS is flying a midcon redeye for SEA-ORD/DFW. Ugh.