Alaska Air Group Reports May Operational Results

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Jun 05, 2012, 08:00 ET

SEATTLE, June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE: ALK) today reported May operational results for its subsidiaries, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, and on a combined basis. Detailed information is provided below.

ALASKA AIRLINES - MAINLINE
Alaska reported an 11.2 percent increase in traffic on an 8.5 percent increase in capacity compared to May 2011. This resulted in a 2.2-point increase in load factor to a record 86.9 percent. Alaska also reported 91.4 percent of its flights arrived on time in May, compared to the 90.7 percent reported in May 2011.

The following table shows Alaska's operational results for May and year-to-date 2012, compared to the prior-year periods:

	May			Year-to-Date
	2012	2011	Change	2012	2011	Change
Revenue passengers (in thousands)	1,566	1,483	5.6%	7,355	7,060	4.2%
Revenue passenger miles RPM (in millions)	2,058	1,850	11.2%	9,681	8,998	7.6%
Available seat miles ASM (in millions)	2,369	2,184	8.5%	11,216	10,740	4.4%
Passenger load factor	86.9%	84.7%	2.2 pts	86.3%	83.8%	2.5 pts
On-time arrivals as reported to U.S. DOT	91.4%	90.7%	0.7 pts	87.3%	86.1%	1.2 pts

HORIZON AIR
Horizon reported a 4.6 percent decline in May traffic on a 3.1 percent decline in capacity compared to May 2011. This resulted in a 1.1-point decrease in load factor to 76.3 percent. Horizon also reported a record 94.4 percent of its flights arrived on time in May, compared to the 87.3 percent reported in May 2011. The decline in capacity and traffic for Horizon from the prior year is due primarily to the completion of Horizon's transition out of the CRJ-700 regional jet. This transition was completed in June 2011.

The following table shows Horizon's operational results for May and year-to-date 2012, compared to the prior-year periods:

	May			Year-to-Date
	2012	2011	Change	2012	2011	Change
Revenue passengers (in thousands)	549	547	0.4%	2,663	2,739	(2.8)%
RPMs (in millions)	167	175	(4.6)%	811	925	(12.3)%
ASMs (in millions)	219	226	(3.1)%	1,065	1,212	(12.1)%
Passenger load factor	76.3%	77.4%	(1.1) pts	76.2%	76.3%	(0.1) pts
On-time arrivals	94.4%	87.3%	7.1 pts	90.6%	80.6%	10.0 pts

AIR GROUP (including flights operated by third parties)
On a combined basis, Air Group reported a 10.9 percent increase in traffic on an 8.3 percent increase in capacity compared to May 2011. This resulted in a 2.0-point increase in load factor to a record 86.0 percent. These statistics include flights operated by Alaska and those under capacity purchase agreements, including Horizon, SkyWest and PenAir.

The following table shows the operational results for May and year-to-date 2012, compared to the prior-year periods:

	May			Year-to-Date
	2012	2011	Change	2012	2011	Change
Revenue passengers (in thousands)	2,162	2,051	5.4%	10,251	9,820	4.4%
RPMs (in millions)	2,266	2,044	10.9%	10,687	9,957	7.3%
ASMs (in millions)	2,635	2,433	8.3%	12,512	12,000	4.3%
Passenger load factor	86.0%	84.0%	2.0 pts	85.4%	83.0%	2.4 pts

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), together serve more than 90 cities through an expansive network in Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. For reservations, visit www.alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

SOURCE Alaska Air Group, Inc.