| |||||||
Founded | May 1981 | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Commenced operations | September 1, 1981 | ||||||
AOC # | QXEA002A [2] | ||||||
Hubs | |||||||
Frequent-flyer program | Mileage Plan | ||||||
Alliance | Oneworld (affiliate) | ||||||
Fleet size | 41 | ||||||
Destinations | 46 | ||||||
Parent company | Alaska Air Group | ||||||
Headquarters | SeaTac, Washington, U.S. | ||||||
Key people | Ben Minicucci (Alaska Air Group CEO) Jason Berry (President) [3] | ||||||
Employees | 3,208 (2023) [4] |
Horizon Air is an American regional airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, United States. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group and it is paid by fellow group member Alaska Airlines to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by Alaska Airlines. Planes operated by Horizon are co-branded as Alaska HORIZON in order to differentiate Horizon's planes from those operated by Alaska's other regional airline partner, SkyWest Airlines.
Horizon Air started operations in September 1981, was purchased by the Alaska Air Group in November 1986, and continued to fly as a separately branded airline until 2011, when it shifted to the current capacity purchase agreement business model.
The airline is headquartered in the Seattle suburb of SeaTac, not far from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and the airline's primary maintenance base is at Portland International Airport. Horizon also considers Seattle–Tacoma and Portland airports to be its hubs.
Horizon Air was formed in May 1981 by Milt Kuolt, Joe Clark, and Bruce McCaw, with initial plans to fly to Hawaii but later changed to serve Washington state. [5] The airline started operations on September 1, 1981, with three Fairchild F-27 aircraft. [6] Its headquarters were in an area that is now within SeaTac, Washington. [7]
Horizon Air's first route connected Yakima to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport and was followed a week later by Tri-Cities Airport in Pasco to Seattle. [8] [9] The general offices of Horizon Air were operated out of an old house behind Sea-Tac Airport. Horizon acquired Air Oregon on June 17, 1982, [10] [11] after both airlines were losing hundreds of thousands of dollars monthly, in order to consolidate and reduce their operating deficit. [12] Horizon agreed to purchase Transwestern Airlines of Utah in September 1983, once again to try to reduce operating deficit of the airline. [13]
A single Fokker F28 Fellowship twin jet, purchased in July 1984 from an African carrier, was the first jet owned by Horizon Air (however, the first jet operated by Horizon was a wet leased Douglas DC-9-10). [14] [15]
An initial public offering occurred in 1985 to secure operating capital, which after only one profitable year since founding, was needed to keep the airline afloat. [16] That summer, Horizon entered into its first codeshare agreement with United Airlines, [17] and on September 8, Horizon signed an agreement with de Havilland Canada to begin purchasing the airline's first brand new aircraft, the de Havilland Canada Dash 8-100 twin turboprop. [18] [19]
Late in 1985, Horizon entered into an agreement to purchase their chief competitor in Washington, Cascade Airways, [20] [21] but by early 1986 were released from the agreement. [22] Merger talks between the two had begun in late 1982. [11]
In January 1986, the airline became an international carrier when it began service to Calgary, Alberta, in association with Cascade Airways. [23]
Alaska Airlines struck a deal to acquire Horizon Air in November 1986. [24] The year before, Alaska had undergone a major corporate restructuring with the airline now being owned by the Alaska Air Group, an airline holding company. Under the agreement, the Alaska Air Group became the owner of Horizon Air after approval by the Transportation Department in late December. [25] [26] The Alaska Air Group continued to operate Horizon as a separately branded airline, with a codesharing agreement with its new sister airline, Alaska, while ending its codeshare with United Airlines.
In 1988, Horizon signed a code share agreement with Northwest Airlines.
International service was expanded in May 1989 with flights to Vancouver and Victoria in British Columbia, using both Dash 8-100s and Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner turboprop aircraft.
Horizon was the launch customer for the Dornier 328 turboprop, intending to replace the Metroliners with this new aircraft which promised speed and comfort on par with jetliners. In recognition of the order, Dornier painted its second prototype of the 328 in Horizon colors. Twelve aircraft were delivered between November 1993 and November 1995, but they were quickly phased out in late 1997, along with the remaining Metroliners, in favor of fleet standardization to the Dash 8 series of turboprops. [27]
Throughout its history, Horizon has either operated as a standalone carrier or as a regional affiliate of Alaska Airlines, except between 2004 and 2007 when it operated Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft on behalf of Frontier Airlines.
In late 2010, Horizon's parent company, the Alaska Air Group, made the decision to no longer operate Horizon as a separate regional airline. [28] Starting on January 1, 2011, Horizon shifted to a capacity purchase agreement (CPA) business model, which had by that time become the regional airline industry standard. Under the CPA, Horizon operates and maintains its aircraft, while Alaska Airlines is responsible for scheduling, marketing and pricing all flights. [28] [29] As part of the change to the new business model, the Horizon Air brand was retired and all Horizon planes were repainted with a co-branded "Alaska Horizon" livery. [30] [29]
Alaska Airlines entered into a similar capacity purchase agreement with SkyWest Airlines in May 2011. As part of the agreement, Alaska Air Group managers agreed to sell Horizon's fleet of five Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet aircraft to SkyWest, which used the aircraft to operate six West Coast routes as "Alaska SkyWest". [31] The move left Horizon with a fleet consisting of a single type of aircraft; the De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400 turboprop.
Horizon announced in April 2016 that it would expand its fleet and once again operate regional jets, placing an order for 30 Embraer 175 airplanes. [32]
The airline experienced a period of turmoil in 2017. Amid unprecedented growth (spurred by the addition of the new aircraft), Horizon experienced a severe pilot shortage, forcing the airline to cancel hundreds of flights and delay delivery of new aircraft. [33] The pilot shortage was part of a broader problem affecting all regional airlines, but hit Horizon particularly hard. After the airline industry started to rebound in 2013 after a decade long downturn, mainline air carriers started to hire pilots, mostly from regional carriers which offer low wages and limited opportunities for advancement. More experienced regional carrier pilots moved to higher paying mainlines. [34] Horizon responded with drastically increased pay for flight crews and worked with Alaska, its sister airline, to create more opportunities for advancement. [35] As a result, there is an influx of new, young pilots with less experience. [34]
In response to the crisis, Alaska shifted some of its flights from Horizon to its other regional partner, SkyWest Airlines. It was a move that Horizon's CEO described as "disheartening." Because of the shift, SkyWest ordered additional Embraer 175 airplanes that it will fly for Alaska. [36]
At the end of the troubled year, Horizon's CEO Dave Campbell announced that he would step down effective January 5, 2018, for personal reasons. [37] Gary Beck became CEO in January 2018. [38] In November 2019, former retiree of the company Joe Sprague returned to Horizon Air as president. [39]
Horizon's 45 destinations are located in the U.S. states of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. [40]
As of October 2023 [update] , the Horizon Air fleet comprises the following aircraft: [41]
Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
F | Y+ | Y | Total | ||||
Embraer 175 | 41 | 9 | 12 | 16 | 48 | 76 | |
Total | 41 | 9 |
The Embraer 175 is a regional jet operated in a three-class configuration (first class, premium class, and main cabin) with a total of 76 all leather, reclining seats. The premium class and main cabin sections of the aircraft have two seats either side of the aisle, while the first class section has a single seat on one side of the aisle and two seats on the other.
Aircraft operated by Horizon Air in the past include:
Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
BAC One-Eleven | 2 | 1986 | 1986 | regional jet, leased from Cascade Airways |
Bombardier CRJ700 | 21 | 2001 | 2011 | regional jet [42] |
De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100 | 24 | 1985 | 2006 | turboprop [43] |
De Havilland Canada Dash 8-200 | 28 | 1997 | 2011 | turboprop [43] |
De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400 | 56 | 2001 | 2023 | turboprop |
Fokker F-27 | 13 | 1981 | 1988 | turboprop, [44] first aircraft type operated by the airline |
Dornier 328 | 12 | 1993 | 1997 | turboprop [45] |
Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner II | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | formerly operated by Air Oregon [46] commuter turboprop |
Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner III | 33 | Unknown | 1997 | [46] [47] commuter turboprop |
Fokker F28 | 22 | 1986 | 2003 | regional jet [48] |
McDonnell Douglas DC-9-10 | 1 | 1984 | 1984 | first jet aircraft type operated by the airline. [15] |
At the start of the carrier, Horizon had a painted sunrise with a small beach with capitalized words saying "Horizon". Until 2011, the Horizon Air livery was very similar to that of its parent, Alaska Airlines, except for a dark red (rather than blue) cheatline, and the tail featured a stylized sunset logo, rather than an Eskimo. Two E175s are currently painted in special liveries. Some Dash 8-100s and Q200s (no longer in service with Horizon Air) had names of various destinations preceded by "Great City of" or "Great Cities of" printed on the front of the airplane. The first Dash 8-100, N811PH was dedicated as the "Great Cities of Seattle/Tacoma" and the second airplane, N812PH was the "Great City of Portland". N824PH was dedicated as the "Great Cities of Pullman/Moscow" on one side and the "Great Cities of Moscow/Pullman" on the other side. N363PH (Q200) was the first airplane to incorporate the "deep bing cherry red" on the underside of the engine nacelle. This became the standard for Horizon's brand livery as well as the current Alaska Airlines livery. Prior to this change, the underside of the nacelle was painted "Horizon White".
On January 25, 2011, Horizon Air announced it was retiring its public brand and adopting the trademark Eskimo of its sister company, Alaska Airlines, on its fleet. Horizon's Bombardier Q400 fleet was repainted with a new scheme prominently featuring "Alaska" across the fuselage and the Eskimo on the tail. The planes continue to include a small Horizon logo on the sides of the aircraft, which now appears in Alaska's dark blue color.
On March 5, 2019, Horizon introduced a themed livery in celebration of Horizon's heritage. Bombardier Q400 #N421QX featured stripes down the side in the traditional Horizon colors and the sunset logo on the tail. The aircraft made its inaugural flight from Yakima to Seattle, the route of Horizon's first ever flight.
Flight time permitting, passengers in the main cabin are offered a complimentary small snack (cookie, nuts or a snack mix) and a beverage.
Horizon, like its parent airline Alaska, focuses on serving and selling items produced by West Coast. [49] [50] Coffee from fellow Seattle company Starbucks is served on all flights. Horizon Air was the first airline in the world to serve Starbucks coffee onboard its flights, beginning on February 1, 1990. Horizon's parent company, Alaska began serving Starbucks on February 1, 2012. [51]
Horizon's aircraft are equipped with a First Class cabin and Premium Class cabin and offer a similar onboard experience to that of Alaska, with complimentary meals in First Class and complimentary alcoholic beverages in both classes.
Horizon's aircraft are equipped with an in-flight Wi-Fi and streaming entertainment system. Alaska and Horizon use Gogo Inflight Internet, a land-based internet service, covering all routes served by the airline. The service is fee-based for all passengers, depending on the length of the flight. [52] [53]
Seattle–Tacoma International Airport is the primary international airport serving Seattle and its metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is in the city of SeaTac, which was named after the airport's nickname “Sea–Tac”, approximately 14 miles (23 km) south of Downtown Seattle and 18 miles (29 km) north-northeast of Downtown Tacoma. The airport is the busiest in the Pacific Northwest region of North America and is owned by the Port of Seattle.
Eugene Airport, also known as Mahlon Sweet Field, is a public airport 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Eugene, in Lane County, Oregon, United States. Owned and operated by the City of Eugene, it is the fifth-largest airport in the Pacific Northwest.
Alaska Airlines is a major airline in the United States headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is the fifth-largest airline in North America when measured by scheduled passengers carried. Alaska, together with its regional partners Horizon Air and SkyWest Airlines, operates a route network primarily focused on connecting cities along the West Coast of the United States to over 100 destinations in the contiguous United States, Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Mexico.
SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest operates and maintains aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by four partner mainline airlines. The company is contracted by Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines. In all, it is the largest regional airline in North America when measured by fleet size, number of passengers carried, and number of destinations served.
United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which five individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights.
Continental Express was the operating brand name used by a number of independently owned regional airlines providing commuter airliner and regional jet feeder service under agreement with Continental Airlines. In 2012 at the time of Continental's merger with United Airlines, two carriers were operating using the Continental Express brand name:
Mesa Airlines, Inc., is an American regional airline based in Phoenix, Arizona. It is an FAA Part 121–certificated air carrier operating under air carrier certificate number MASA036A issued on June 29, 1979. It is a subsidiary of Mesa Air Group and operates flights as United Express via respective code sharing agreements with United Airlines. It serves more than 180 markets in the Western Hemisphere. In a 1997 article from the Journal of Air Transportation, Mesa's safety record was noted as having the fewest incidents among domestic regional airlines at that time. Mesa filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2010, hoping to shed financial obligations for leases on airplanes it no longer needed and emerged from bankruptcy in March 2011. In November 2017, Mesa opened a new training center in Phoenix. The 23,000-square-foot facility features a full-size CRJ-200 cabin trainer aircraft, 14 classrooms, and has the capacity to train 300 crew members at one time.
Piedmont Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in Wicomico County, Maryland, near the city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group and it is paid by fellow group member American Airlines to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on American Eagle flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by American Airlines. Piedmont also provides ground handling and customer service for airports in the northeastern and western United States.
Empire Airlines is a passenger and cargo airline based in Hayden, Idaho, near Coeur d'Alene. It operates over 120 scheduled cargo flights a day in 18 US states and Canada. Empire also started passenger service within Hawaii, under the name "Ohana by Hawaiian", which was run from 2014-2021. Its main base is Coeur d'Alene Airport with a hub at Spokane International Airport. The company slogan is We Can Do That.
Eastern Oregon Regional Airport is a public airport three miles northwest of Pendleton, in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. Commercial service is provided by Boutique Air to Portland, subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.
Idaho Falls Regional Airport is two miles north-northwest of downtown Idaho Falls, Idaho, United States. It is locally known as Fanning Field. It is the second-busiest airport in Idaho after Boise Airport.
Lewiston–Nez Perce County Airport is a public airport in the northwest United States, in north-central Idaho. Owned by the city of Lewiston and Nez Perce County, it is in an elevated area of the city two miles (3 km) south of downtown, approximately 700 vertical feet (210 m) above the Snake and Clearwater rivers.
Magic Valley Regional Airport, also known as Joslin Field, is a public use airport located four nautical miles (7 km) south of the central business district of Twin Falls, Idaho. The airport is owned by the City and County of Twin Falls. It is mostly used for general aviation but is also served by two commercial airlines.
Flagstaff Pulliam Airport is 5 miles south of Flagstaff, in Coconino County, Arizona, United States. The airport is serviced by American Eagle, and is also used for general aviation. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 called it a "primary commercial service" airport. It is the closest airport to Grand Canyon National Park with scheduled passenger service from a major airline.
Glacier Park International Airport is in Flathead County, Montana, United States, six miles northeast of Kalispell. The airport is owned and operated by the Flathead Municipal Airport Authority, a public agency created by the county in 1974.
Pullman–Moscow Regional Airport is a public airport in the northwest United States, located in Whitman County, Washington, two miles (3 km) east of Pullman, Washington and four miles (6 km) west of Moscow, Idaho. The airport is accessed via spurs from State Route 270, and has a single 7,101-foot (2,164 m) runway, headed northeast–southwest (5/23), which entered service in October 2019. The former runway (6/24) was 6,730 feet (2,051 m) and aligned with Moscow Mountain twelve miles (20 km) to the northeast, the highest summit in the area.
McAllister Field is a public airport three miles south of Yakima, in Yakima County, Washington. Owned by the City of Yakima, it is used for general aviation and commercial air service. Yakima is served by one scheduled passenger air carrier and two non-scheduled carriers. Sun Country Airlines operates charter flights to Laughlin, NV and Xtra Airways operates charter flights to Wendover, NV.
Cascade Airways was an airline in the northwest United States which flew primarily regional air routes out of Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1969, it operated for 17 years and was shut down in 1986. Its IATA code (CZ) was later assigned to China Southern Airlines which was formed two years after Cascade's shutdown.
Harbor Airlines was a commuter airline from the United States, which existed from 1971 to 2001. Based at Oak Harbor, Washington, it operated regional passenger flights in the Puget Sound area.
On August 10, 2018, a Horizon Air De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400 was stolen from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (Sea–Tac) in Seattle, Washington. The perpetrator, 29-year-old Richard Russell, was a Horizon Air ground service agent with no piloting experience. After Russell performed an unauthorized takeoff, two McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle fighters were scrambled to intercept the aircraft. Sea–Tac air traffic control made radio contact with Russell, the sole occupant, who described himself as a "broken guy, got a few screws loose, I guess." About 1 hour and 15 minutes after takeoff, Russell crashed the aircraft on lightly populated Ketron Island in Puget Sound, killing himself.