J.D. Power Study Ranks Alaska Airlines Highest in Traditional Carrier Satisfaction for Ninth Straight Year; Alaska Airlines Improves Score by 32 Points Over Last Year

SEATTLE, May 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Airlines ranked highest in airline customer satisfaction among traditional carriers for the ninth consecutive year in the J.D. Power 2016 North America Airline Satisfaction Study. The organization also announced today that travelers ranked the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan highest in overall customer satisfaction for the third consecutive year in its Airline Loyalty/Rewards Program Satisfaction Report.

"This recognition reflects tremendously on our employees, who have built a customer-focused culture here at Alaska," said Alaska Airlines CEO Brad Tilden. "As we have seen new competition across our network over the last several years, our people are truly raising the bar in terms of how we serve our customers. Nine consecutive awards at any time would be amazing, but achieving this in the face of intense competition is an incredible accomplishment. The rest of the leadership team and I want to thank everyone at Alaska and Horizon Air for their skill and dedication."

The study, based on more than 10,000 responses, measures satisfaction of business and leisure travelers who flew a major North America carrier between March 2015 and March 2016. Alaska Airlines ranked highest of any traditional airline across all seven categories, including cost and fees; boarding/deplaning/baggage; flight crew; in-flight services, aircraft; check-in; and reservations. Traditional carriers are defined as airlines that operate multi-cabin aircraft and use multiple airport hubs.

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Again Ranks Highest in Overall Customer Satisfaction
J.D. Power also ranked the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan highest in overall customer satisfaction for the third straight year. The Airline Loyalty/Rewards Program Satisfaction Report ranking is based on six factors, including ease of redeeming points/miles; reward program terms; account maintenance/management; ease of earning points/miles; variety of benefits available; and customer service. The report, which measures customer satisfaction with airline reward and loyalty programs, is based on responses from more than 3,000 airline loyalty and reward program members surveyed in March 2016.

"Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan is in a class of its own," said Sangita Woerner, Alaska Airlines' vice president of marketing. "Our program offers customers generous rewards based on miles flown, access to 17 airline partners to earn and redeem miles on when they fly, and provides the ability to earn elite status faster than any other airline loyalty program."

Alaska Airlines continues to make enhancements to its frequent flier program that make it even easier to earn miles. Customers can now earn bonuses between 25 – 75 percent when they fly in first class, refundable coach and many business fares, while MVP Gold 75k members can earn an additional 125 percent bonus miles when they fly. Additionally, members can earn elite-qualifying miles when they fly on any of Alaska's 15 international partners.

Read the official J.D. Power releases at www.jdpower.com.

Editor's note: Download new, high-definition b-roll and photos at http://www.alaskasworld.com/newsroom/ASNews/photos.asp.

Alaska Airlines, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), together with its partner regional airlines, serves more than 100 cities through an expansive network in the United States, Canada, Costa Rica and Mexico. Alaska Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Carriers in North America" in the J.D. Power North American Airline Satisfaction Study for nine consecutive years from 2008 to 2016. Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan also 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. For reservations, visit www.alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160510/366266 

SOURCE Alaska Airlines