Alaska Air Group reports August 2017 operational results

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Alaska Air Group Inc.

Sep 11, 2017, 13:59 ET

SEATTLE, Sept. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE: ALK) today reported August and year-to-date operational results on a consolidated basis for its mainline operations operated by subsidiaries Alaska Airlines, Inc. (Alaska) and Virgin America Inc. (Virgin America), and for its regional flying operated by subsidiary Horizon Air Industries Inc. (Horizon) and third-party regional carriers SkyWest Airlines and Peninsula Airlines.

Air Group's acquisition of Virgin America took place on Dec. 14, 2016. Operational results below include Virgin America results from pre-acquisition periods for comparison.

AIR GROUP
On a combined basis for all operations, Air Group reported a 5.8 percent increase in traffic on a 5.5 percent increase in capacity compared to August 2016. Load factor increased 0.4 points to 86.2 percent.

The following table shows the operational results for August and year-to-date, compared to the prior-year periods(1):

August

Year-to-Date

2017

2016

Change

2017

2016

Change

Revenue passengers (000)

4,027

3,936

2.3%

29,519

28,179

4.8%

Revenue passenger miles RPM (000,000) "traffic"

4,784

4,520

5.8%

34,909

32,830

6.3%

Available seat miles ASM (000,000) "capacity"

5,552

5,265

5.5%

41,148

38,987

5.5%

Passenger load factor

86.2%

85.8%

0.4 pts

84.8%

84.2%

0.6 pts


(1)

2016 information has been adjusted to include Virgin America operating results for comparison.

ALASKA
Alaska reported a 6.8 percent increase in traffic on a 6.2 percent increase in capacity compared to August 2016. Load factor increased 0.5 points to 86.7 percent. Alaska also reported 82.8 percent of its flights arrived on time in August 2017, compared to 87.8 percent reported in August 2016.

The following table shows Alaska's operational results for August and year-to-date, compared to the prior-year periods:

August

Year-to-Date

2017

2016

Change

2017

2016

Change

Revenue passengers (000)

2,414

2,303

4.8%

17,625

16,521

6.7%

RPMs (000,000)

3,233

3,027

6.8%

23,840

22,255

7.1%

ASMs (000,000)

3,732

3,513

6.2%

27,824

26,243

6.0%

Passenger load factor

86.7%

86.2%

0.5 pts

85.7%

84.8%

0.9 pts

On-time arrivals as reported to U.S. DOT

82.8%

87.8%

(5.0) pts

81.5%

88.3%

(6.8) pts

VIRGIN AMERICA
Virgin America traffic increased 2.7 percent on a 3.0 percent increase in capacity compared to August 2016. Load factor decreased 0.3 points to 85.8 percent. Virgin America also reported 66.7 percent of its flights arrived on time in August 2017, compared to 73.9 percent in August 2016.

The following table shows Virgin America operational results for August and year-to-date, compared to the prior-year periods:

August

Year-to-Date

2017

2016

Change

2017

2016

Change

Revenue passengers (000)

763

744

2.6%

5,492

5,354

2.6%

RPMs (000,000)

1,175

1,144

2.7%

8,405

8,089

3.9%

ASMs (000,000)

1,369

1,329

3.0%

10,007

9,620

4.0%

Passenger load factor

85.8%

86.1%

(0.3) pts

84.0%

84.1%

(0.1) pts

On-time arrivals as reported to U.S. DOT

66.7%

73.9%

(7.2) pts

65.9%

75.8%

(9.9) pts

REGIONAL
Regional traffic increased 7.7 percent on a 6.6 percent increase in capacity compared to August 2016. Load factor increased 0.9 points to 83.4 percent. Regional carriers also reported 76.3 percent of its flights arrived on time in August 2017, compared to 83.1 percent in August 2016.

The following table shows regional operational results for August and year-to-date compared to the prior-year periods:

August

Year-to-Date

2017

2016

Change

2017

2016

Change

Revenue passengers (000)

850

889

(4.4)%

6,402

6,304

1.6%

RPMs (000,000)

376

349

7.7%

2,665

2,486

7.2%

ASMs (000,000)

451

423

6.6%

3,317

3,124

6.2%

Passenger load factor

83.4%

82.5%

0.9 pts

80.3%

79.6%

0.7 pts

On-time arrivals as reported to U.S. DOT

76.3%

83.1%

(6.8) pts

78.9%

87.2%

(8.3) pts

Alaska Airlines, together with Virgin America and its regional partners, flies 40 million guests 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, guests can earn and redeem miles on flights to more than 900 destinations worldwide. Alaska Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Carriers in North America" in the J.D. Power North America Satisfaction Study for 10 consecutive years from 2008 to 2017. 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 Air Group Inc.