Alaska taking over PDX-DEN????
Mar 9, 2003, 4:34 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: SEA/DEN
Programs: Alaska MVP Gold, Delta Gold Medallion, Hilton Honors Gold
Posts: 311
Alaska taking over PDX-DEN????
It's been reported on the USAviation.com forums that Alaska Airlines is planning to takeover PDX-DEN from Horizon.
Any truth to this?
If it's true, well good bye awesome sleek CRJ700s.
Regards
Any truth to this?
If it's true, well good bye awesome sleek CRJ700s.
Regards
Mar 9, 2003, 8:56 pm
#2
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: PDX: Hilton Diamond, Alaska MVP Gold
Posts: 380
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by BA:
If it's true, well good bye awesome sleek CRJ700s.
Regards</font>
If it's true, well good bye awesome sleek CRJ700s.
Regards</font>
...and hello First Class Upgrade seats on AS 737's
This is a departure from PDX/SFO where AS is giving up two flights a day thus far to Horizon. That's made me send more business to UA when I've had a choice of a UA 737 in F (more 500 mile upgrades than I know what to do with anyway) or a Horizon CRJ.
CS
Mar 9, 2003, 10:27 pm
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Over the Bay Bridge, CA
Programs: Jumbo mas
Posts: 38,654
I find those CRJ seats to be very narrow and I am more uncomfortable in those than in the rest of their fleet. The planes themselves are decent, but the seating is the pits.
Mar 11, 2003, 1:49 pm
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: East Ester, Alaska
Programs: Alaska Million Miler, United Million Miler, Wyndham Rewards Diamond, Choice Hotels Diamond
Posts: 12,148
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Daze:
DEN-PDX is too long a flight for a CRJ.
Give me a full size plane for this trip.</font>
DEN-PDX is too long a flight for a CRJ.
Give me a full size plane for this trip.</font>
Either way, regional jets belong on regional routes. IMHO, PDX-DEN at 990 miles and 2+ hours doesn't fit the bill as well as SEA-EUG, PDX-BOI, SEA-GEG-MSO, etc.
Mar 11, 2003, 6:49 pm
#7
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 5,957
It's true - Alaska is taking over PDX-DEN, and Horizon will be discontinuing PDX-TUS. Here is the employee news release at Horizon regarding the summer schedule changes.
Horizon and Alaska continue to harmonize future schedule plans
March 7, 2003
Horizon Air and Alaska Airlines have unveiled flight schedule plans designed to better exploit market opportunities and optimize Alaska Air Group fleet utilization by tailoring the right-sized aircraft to each market. The changes include the return of Alaska to Boise, which it last served in January 1993.
Some of the changes are permanent, while others are for the summer only, ending Sept. 6. Among the permanent changes, starting June 8 Alaska will operate two daily Boise-Seattle flights with 140-seat aircraft, replacing three Horizon flights currently operated with 70-seat aircraft.
Total AAG flights on the Boise-Seattle route will drop from eight to seven flights each way, but because of the larger aircraft total seats will increase 12 percent.
More importantly, the larger Alaska aircraft will pump the added capacity into the market’s most popular travel times so that AAG can absorb demand that is now turned away or flying on competitors.
In addition to being served by Horizon, Seattle-Boise is currently served nonstop by Southwest Airlines and by Delta and United via connections.
Alaska’s two daily operations in Boise will be handled by Horizon, which currently offers nonstop service from Boise to 11 cities. Seasonal connecting service from Boise to Sun Valley will end April 5 and return June 8, while once-daily winter service to Phoenix will end April 27. Alaska currently maintains a reservations call center in Boise.
Also starting June 8, Alaska will operate two daily flights between Portland and Denver in place of Horizon. The change will free aircraft time for Horizon to beef up Montana summer flying.
In the fall, Horizon will either re-enter the Portland-Denver market or redeploy the aircraft in other markets with profit potential.
Horizon will add a third Seattle-Billings flight, a fourth Seattle-Kalispell flight, and new nonstop service between Missoula and Portland for the summer only. Summer-only schedule plans also call for Horizon to operate a third Seattle-Fresno flight.
In another move targeted at better matching capacity to demand, Horizon will drop one Portland-Sacramento flight and operate it to San Jose instead, while Alaska will drop one Portland-San Jose flight and operate it to Sacramento. Schedule frequency in both markets will remain the same, while overcapacity to San Jose will be shifted to Sacramento, where demand is stronger. Horizon will continue to handle all flights at Sacramento while Alaska will handle all flights at San Jose.
Horizon’s Portland-Tucson nonstop service will be permanently discontinued June 7. Passengers have been unwilling to pay the fare premium that Horizon needs for nonstop service to be profitable with 70-seat aircraft in this market, according to Pat Zachwieja, vice president, Marketing and Planning. Current plans call for Horizon to continue offering San Jose-Tucson nonstop service twice daily. Tucson is also served nonstop from Seattle by Alaska.
Still pending is where Horizon will redeploy some of the aircraft time made available by the discontinuation of Portland-Tucson service as well as some of the summer-only flying that ends Sept. 6.
According to Zachwieja, several options are under active consideration and further announcements will be made when plans are finalized.
“We’re looking at everything closely, taking nothing for granted, and moving quickly to pursue potential profit in response to the quickly shifting sands of the market,” said Zachwieja.
Horizon and Alaska Schedule Scoreboard
Market Horizon change Alaska change Net change Total flights Starts Ends
Boise-Seattle -3 +2 -1 7 Jun. 8 Permanent
Portland-Denver -2 +2 0 2 Jun. 8 Indefinite
Seattle-Billings +1 +1 3 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Missoula-Portland +1 +1 1 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Seattle-Fresno +1 +1 3 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Portland-San Jose +1 -1 0 6 Jun. 8 Permanent
Portland-Sacramento -1 +1 0 5 Jun. 8 Permanent
Portland-Tucson -1 -1 0 Jun. 8 Permanent
Seattle-Kalispell +1 +1 4 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Horizon and Alaska continue to harmonize future schedule plans
March 7, 2003
Horizon Air and Alaska Airlines have unveiled flight schedule plans designed to better exploit market opportunities and optimize Alaska Air Group fleet utilization by tailoring the right-sized aircraft to each market. The changes include the return of Alaska to Boise, which it last served in January 1993.
Some of the changes are permanent, while others are for the summer only, ending Sept. 6. Among the permanent changes, starting June 8 Alaska will operate two daily Boise-Seattle flights with 140-seat aircraft, replacing three Horizon flights currently operated with 70-seat aircraft.
Total AAG flights on the Boise-Seattle route will drop from eight to seven flights each way, but because of the larger aircraft total seats will increase 12 percent.
More importantly, the larger Alaska aircraft will pump the added capacity into the market’s most popular travel times so that AAG can absorb demand that is now turned away or flying on competitors.
In addition to being served by Horizon, Seattle-Boise is currently served nonstop by Southwest Airlines and by Delta and United via connections.
Alaska’s two daily operations in Boise will be handled by Horizon, which currently offers nonstop service from Boise to 11 cities. Seasonal connecting service from Boise to Sun Valley will end April 5 and return June 8, while once-daily winter service to Phoenix will end April 27. Alaska currently maintains a reservations call center in Boise.
Also starting June 8, Alaska will operate two daily flights between Portland and Denver in place of Horizon. The change will free aircraft time for Horizon to beef up Montana summer flying.
In the fall, Horizon will either re-enter the Portland-Denver market or redeploy the aircraft in other markets with profit potential.
Horizon will add a third Seattle-Billings flight, a fourth Seattle-Kalispell flight, and new nonstop service between Missoula and Portland for the summer only. Summer-only schedule plans also call for Horizon to operate a third Seattle-Fresno flight.
In another move targeted at better matching capacity to demand, Horizon will drop one Portland-Sacramento flight and operate it to San Jose instead, while Alaska will drop one Portland-San Jose flight and operate it to Sacramento. Schedule frequency in both markets will remain the same, while overcapacity to San Jose will be shifted to Sacramento, where demand is stronger. Horizon will continue to handle all flights at Sacramento while Alaska will handle all flights at San Jose.
Horizon’s Portland-Tucson nonstop service will be permanently discontinued June 7. Passengers have been unwilling to pay the fare premium that Horizon needs for nonstop service to be profitable with 70-seat aircraft in this market, according to Pat Zachwieja, vice president, Marketing and Planning. Current plans call for Horizon to continue offering San Jose-Tucson nonstop service twice daily. Tucson is also served nonstop from Seattle by Alaska.
Still pending is where Horizon will redeploy some of the aircraft time made available by the discontinuation of Portland-Tucson service as well as some of the summer-only flying that ends Sept. 6.
According to Zachwieja, several options are under active consideration and further announcements will be made when plans are finalized.
“We’re looking at everything closely, taking nothing for granted, and moving quickly to pursue potential profit in response to the quickly shifting sands of the market,” said Zachwieja.
Horizon and Alaska Schedule Scoreboard
Market Horizon change Alaska change Net change Total flights Starts Ends
Boise-Seattle -3 +2 -1 7 Jun. 8 Permanent
Portland-Denver -2 +2 0 2 Jun. 8 Indefinite
Seattle-Billings +1 +1 3 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Missoula-Portland +1 +1 1 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Seattle-Fresno +1 +1 3 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Portland-San Jose +1 -1 0 6 Jun. 8 Permanent
Portland-Sacramento -1 +1 0 5 Jun. 8 Permanent
Portland-Tucson -1 -1 0 Jun. 8 Permanent
Seattle-Kalispell +1 +1 4 Jun. 8 Sept. 6
Mar 11, 2003, 8:06 pm
#8
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: East Ester, Alaska
Programs: Alaska Million Miler, United Million Miler, Wyndham Rewards Diamond, Choice Hotels Diamond
Posts: 12,148
Thanks, AS Flyer!
You're a great resource re. all things Alaska and Horizon related!
You're a great resource re. all things Alaska and Horizon related!