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Horizon Air

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This article is about the United States-based airline. For the Australia-based airline, see Horizon Airlines (Australia).
Horizon Air
IATA ICAO Call sign
QX QXE HORIZON AIR
Founded1981
Commenced operationsSeptember 1, 1981
Hubs
Secondary hubs
Frequent-flyer programMileage Plan
Fleet size57
Destinations47
Parent companyAlaska Air Group
HeadquartersSeaTac, Washington[1][2]
Key peopleGlenn Johnson (President)
Websitehttp://www.horizonair.com/
Horizon Air headquarters

Horizon Air Industries, Inc. (d/b/a Horizon Air)[3] is a regional low-cost airline based in SeaTac, Washington, United States.[4][5][6] It is the eighth largest regional airline in the USA, serving 52 cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Horizon Air and its sister carrier Alaska Airlines are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group. It is also a substantial codeshare partner of American Airlines and Delta Air Lines.

History

1980s

A Horizon Air Fairchild F27 at Spokane International Airport. (1993)

Horizon Air was formed in May 1981 by Milt Kuolt, and started operations on September 1, 1981 with three Fairchild F-27 aircraft.[7] The airline was formed as a merger of Horizon Airlines and Air Oregon in 1982. Its headquarters were in an area that is now within SeaTac, Washington.[8]

Horizon Air's first route was from Yakima to Seattle, and one week later, Pasco to Seattle.[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, after both airlines were losing hundreds of thousands of dollars monthly, in order to consolidate and reduce their operating deficit.[10] Horizon agreed to purchase Transwestern Airlines of Utah in September 1983, once again to try to reduce operating deficit of the airline.[11] A single Fokker F28 was the first jet owned by Horizon Air, purchased from a carrier in Africa, in July 1984, however their first jet was a wet leased Douglas DC-9.[12][13]

An initial public offering occurred in 1984 to secure operating capital, which after only one profitable year since founding, was needed to keep the airline afloat.[14] On September 8, 1985 Horizon signed an agreement with de Havilland Canada to begin purchasing the airline's first brand new aircraft, the de Haviland Dash 8.[15][16] In the summer of 1985, Horizon entered into its first codeshare agreement with United Airlines,[17] which attracted the attention of Alaska Airlines who finally purchased Horizon in 1986.[18] Late in 1985 Horizon entered into an agreement to purchase their chief competitor in Washington, Cascade Airways,[19] but by early 1986 were released from the agreement.[20] In 1988 Horizon signed a codeshare agreement with Northwest Airlines. In 1989, Horizon became an international carrier when it began service to Vancouver, BC and Victoria, BC in May of that year using both Dash-8-100s and Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner.

1990s

A Horizon Air Bombardier Q200 lands at Portland International Airport. (2008)

Horizon was the launch customer for the Dornier 328 turboprop, intending to replace the Fairchild Metroliners with this new aircraft which promised jetliner speed and comfort.[citation needed] Prototype#2 was painted in Horizon colors.[citation needed] Twelve were delivered between November 1993 and November 1995, but they were quickly phased out in 1997 in favor of fleet standardization around the Dash-8.[citation needed]

2000s

In the spring of 2007, Horizon launched service from Los Angeles and Seattle to Santa Rosa, California to take advantage of the burgeoning wine and tourism industry. This was a significant coup [citation needed] for the Sonoma County region which had not had regularly scheduled air service in almost six years. The new routes proved so popular that in the fall of 2007, Horizon commenced non stop service from Portland, OR to Santa Rosa, and expanded the schedule for non stop flights between Los Angeles and Santa Rosa. It is wholly owned by the Alaska Air Group and has 4,040 employees (at March 2007).[21] Horizon Air has been featured in several films, including the 1983 motion picture WarGames and 1995 motion picture Georgia (1995 film).

2010s

A Bombardier Q400 in Alaska/Horizon livery, reflecting the retirement of the Horizon Air brand

On August 23, 2010, it was announced that Horizon's business model was to change to having all decisions about route choices and marketing services being made by Alaska Airlines by the beginning of 2011. The business model Alaska Air Group Inc. is adapting is called the "Capacity Purchase Agreement." The change would mean that all ticket revenue would go to Alaska Airlines, and Horizon's operating costs would be covered by Alaska Airlines. Before the change, limited amounts of Horizon routes had been operated as such, but more had been run entirely by Horizon.[22]

On January 25, 2011, Alaska Airlines announced that it will be retiring the Horizon Air brand. All Horizon planes will be repainted in the trademarked eskimo Alaska livery, but the service and extras Horizon is known for will stay the same.

Management

Glenn Johnson was appointed President of Horizon Air in June 2010, replacing the retiring CEO and President Jeff Pinneo. Johnson joined Alaska Airlines in 1982 as a staff auditor and was promoted to Director of Revenue Accounting. In 1991, he joined Horizon as Vice President of Finance and Treasurer, and was then promoted to Senior Vice President of Customer Services. In 2003, Johnson returned to Alaska to serve as Vice President of Finance and Treasurer for Alaska Air Group and Alaska Airlines, and he was subsequently promoted to Executive Vice President and CFO.

Destinations

A Horizon Air Bombardier Q400 at Mammoth Yosemite Airport in Mammoth Lakes, California. (2010)
Main article: Horizon Air destinations

Horizon's 47 destinations are located in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. Horizon also has service to Alberta and British Columbia, Canada as well as Baja California Sur, Mexico. Codesharing with Alaska Airlines, American Airlines,[23] and Delta Air Lines allows Horizon Air customers to fly to cities not served by Horizon Air throughout the U.S. as well as the rest of the world.[24]

Fleet

A Horizon Air Bombardier Q400 landing at Vancouver International Airport. (2008)

Horizon Air operates 49 narrow-body aircraft as of June 2011, with a single economy class service:[25]

Horizon Air Fleet[25]
Aircraft Total Orders Passengers
(Economy)
Bombardier Q400
48
1
76

The average Horizon Air fleet age is 6 years old as of June 2011.[26] The Q400 is a 74 or 76 seat, high-wing turboprop. All Horizon Air aircraft are operated in a single class configuration. Each row has two seats on either side of the aisle. As such, there are no middle seats on Horizon, only window or aisle. Horizon Air features all leather seating.[27]

In May 2011, SkyWest Airlines would begin operating six of Alaska Airlines' West Coast routes using five Bombardier CRJ-700s purchased from Horizon Air. SkyWest owns, operates and maintains the aircraft, while Alaska Airlines schedules, prices and markets the flights.[28]

Fleet history

A Horizon Air CRJ-700 at Denver International Airport in 2007. The CRJ-700s were retired in mid-2011.

Aircraft that have been in service with Horizon Air are (in alphabetical order):

On May 31, 2011, Horizon Air phased out the last of its CRJ-700 planes and now operates only the Q400.[25][30] In January 2007, the Q200s were removed from Horizon Air service and were dry leased to CommutAir.[36]

Livery

At the start of the carrier, Horizon had a painted sunset with a small beach with capitalized words saying "Horizon". Until recently, the current Horizon Air livery was very similar to its parent, Alaska Airlines, except for a dark red (rather than blue) cheatline, and the tail includes a stylized sun and sunset logo, rather than an Eskimo. Eleven Q400s are currently painted in special liveries. Some Dash 8-200's (no longer in service with Horizon Air) had names of Horizon destinations printed near the front left door.

On January 25, 2011 Horizon Air announced it was retiring its public brand and adopted the trademark Eskimo of its sister company, Alaska Airlines, on its fleet. As part of the brand change, Horizon's Bombardier Q400 fleet will be repainted with a new paint scheme prominently featuring "Alaska" across the fuselage and the Eskimo on the tail. The plane will continue to include the Horizon logo on the sides of the aircraft, which will now appear in Alaska's dark blue color.

Special liveries

The Horizon Air Bombardier Q400 in Horizon Air "25th Anniversary" theme.

Eleven Q400s are painted in special liveries:

  • N425QX is a 25th anniversary theme, featuring bright colors and confetti painted along the entire plane. Casually referred to as either "The Party Plane" or "Skittles."[citation needed]
  • Two aircraft are painted in the "Comfortably Greener" scheme to highlight the fuel-saving attributes of the Q400 over regional jets. One is N439QX, and N438QX was later painted in the same scheme;[37] together, these two planes are casually referred to as "Shrek" and "Fiona."[citation needed]

Many of the airline's special liveries feature the colors and logos of universities located in the Pacific Northwest.[38] These include:

Services

Many of the airline's services are the same as those offered by Alaska Airlines, which is Horizon Air's sister company.

Board Room

Board Room is the Alaska Air Group airport lounge, and are located in seven west coast airports including: Anchorage, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle. Board Room Members also have access to Delta Air Lines Sky Club at airports across the country. Memberships start at $45 for a single-day pass, up to $875 for a new three-year membership.[42][43]

Mileage Plan

The words Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan and an airplane tail with an Eskimo head

Mileage Plan is the travel rewards program of the Alaska Air Group, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. The program's airline partners also include Oneworld member airlines American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, LAN, and Qantas; SkyTeam member airlines Air France, Continental Airlines (until October 24, 2009), Delta Air Lines, and Northwest Airlines; as well as Air Pacific, Era Aviation, Frontier Alaska, Mokulele Airlines, and PenAir.[44] MVP and MVP Gold are Mileage Plan's top tiers for experienced travelers.[45]

The Mileage Plan program has no membership fee and any mileage will be valid to the last day of the 24th month following the month of the last flight or transaction date. In addition, if a Mileage Plan member does not accumulate mileage within nine months after becoming a member, or a Mileage Plan member's account remains inactive at zero mileage for a consecutive 24 month period, the Mileage Plan account will be canceled.[46]

MVP and MVP Gold

The MVP and MVP Gold program is the frequent flyer service status program and is divided into two membership levels, MVP and MVP Gold based on the member's travel in the last calendar year. Higher-tiered members are provided with increased travel benefits such as bonus mileage, priority boarding and airport lounge access.[42]

MVP

MVP level is achieved or retained when the member earns 20,000 miles (32,000 km) on Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air, 25,000 miles (40,000 km) on Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, KLM, Air France, or LAN Airlines, or 30 one-way segments on any combination of Mileage Plan members. Membership benefits include 50 percent bonus mileage, priority check-in at First Class counters, priority seating on board Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air flights, as well as a 50 percent discount on Board Room membership. Members booked in fare class Y and YAS can be upgraded to First Class at anytime, and all other rate categories with in 48 hours of flight.[42]

MVP Gold

MVP level is achieved or retained when the member earns 40,000 miles (64,000 km) on Alaska Airlines or Horizon Air, 50,000 miles (80,000 km) on Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, KLM, Air France, LAN, or Northwest Airlines, or 60 one-way segments on any combination of Mileage Plan members. Membership benefits include 100 percent bonus mileage, priority check-in at First Class counters, priority seating on board Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air flights, as well as complimentary Board Room membership. Members booked in fare class Y, S, B, M, H, or Value and Full Flex fares can be upgraded to First Class at anytime, and all other rate categories with in 72 hours of flight. Companions also receive this benefit, and members are given four complimentary upgrade certificates for guests annually. A 50,000-mile (80,000 km) bonus is awarded to MVP Gold members who travel at least 75,000 miles (121,000 km) on Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air, American Airlines, Air France, Delta Air Lines, LAN, KLM, or Northwest Airlines, or 100 total one-way segments.[42]

On board services

Since 1991, Starbucks coffee is served in-flight on all Horizon Air flights, and is brewed at the terminal and served in thermos containers on board the aircraft.[47] Horizon has set itself apart from its sister company and other airlines by offering, to passengers of age, free Northwest beer and wine.[48] Other free beverages include Coca-Cola products, Talking Rain sparkling water, juices, and tea [49]. Horizon also offers a limited buy on board meal service. This includes a variety of snack packs and Umpqua Oats All Natural Oatmeal [50] Unlike Alaska Airlines, there are currently no plans to install in flight wireless internet on board Horizon Air planes.[51]

Incidents and accidents

Since the founding, no fatal accidents have occurred.

  • On April 15, 1988, Flight 2658, a DeHavilland Canada Dash 8-100 (N819PH-Great City of Sun Valley), enroute from Seattle to Spokane with 37 passenger and 3 crew members, crashed after attempting an emergency landing in Seattle, Washington when the number two (right side/starboard) engine caught fire (due to a manufacturing defect) after take-off from Seattle. Loss of hydraulic pressure due to the fire caused the aircraft to veer off the runway, across the grass, across Taxiway B and crash into the B7 and B9 jetways, destroying the plane. There were 4 serious injuries and no fatalities.[53][54]
  • On May 23, 1990, a Fairchild Metroliner III on a flight from Portland to Seattle suffered a window blowout at 14,000 feet (4,300 m) above Olympia. The flight made an emergency descent and landing to its planned destination of Sea-Tac Airport. The passenger seated next to the window, who was partially sucked out of the plane for a brief period, was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for his injuries and released.[55][56]

See also

References

  • Endicott, Bill (2001). Williams, Dayna Spear (ed.). Remember the Magic… The Story of Horizon Air. Turner Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-56311-725-1.
  1. ^ "Contact Phone Numbers." Alaska Air Group. December 1, 1998. Retrieved on July 23, 2009.
  2. ^ "Overview". Horizon Air Company Facts. Alaska Air Group. 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-11. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  3. ^ "IOSA Operational Safety Audit". International Air Transport Association. Archived from the original on 2008-05-11. Retrieved 2008-10-22.
  4. ^ "Media Contacts: Alaska Airlines," Alaska Airlines
  5. ^ "TOP INDUSTRIES." City of SeaTac. Retrieved July 20, 2008.
  6. ^ "City of SeaTac Zoning." City of SeaTac. Retrieved August 20, 2008.
  7. ^ Endicott 2001, p. 32
  8. ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. March 31, 1984. 844.
  9. ^ Endicott 2001, p. 52
  10. ^ Endicott 2001, pg. 119-125
  11. ^ Associated Press (1983-09-13). "Horizon buys Utah airline". Spokane Chronicle. Google News Archives. Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  12. ^ Endicott 2001, p. 141
  13. ^ a b Associated Press (1984-07-02). "Pasco to be served by jets". Spokane Chronicle. Google News Archives. Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  14. ^ AP (1995-05-30). "Horizon Air says it plans to issue stock". Eugene Register-Guard. Google News Archives. Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  15. ^ "Annual Report, 1985". Horizon Air. p. 1. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  16. ^ "Horizon Air orders 10 planes". Spokane Chronicle. Google News Archives. 1985-09-04. Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  17. ^ Endicott 2001, p. 220
  18. ^ Endicott 2001, p. 230
  19. ^ Associated Press (1985-08-01). "Horizon buying Cascade". Spokane Chronicle. Google News Archives. Retrieved 2009-09-15. [dead link‍]
  20. ^ Bartel, Frank. "Horizon released from agreement to buy Cascade". Spokane Spokesman-Review. Google News Archives. Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  21. ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2007-04-03. p. 91.
  22. ^ "Horizon Air Changes Business Model". Aviation Week. 23 August 2010. Retrieved 26 August 2010.
  23. ^ "Codeshare Partners". American Airlines. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
  24. ^ "Horizon / Northwest Airlines will soon begin coordination of services". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. 1988-12-16. pp. B6. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  25. ^ a b c "Fleet". Horizon Air Company Facts. Alaska Air Group. 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-20. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  26. ^ "Airline fleet age - Horizon Air". Airfleets.net. Retrieved 2011-06-18.
  27. ^ a b "Bombardier Q400 Aircraft Information". Retrieved 2011-06-18.
  28. ^ http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/story/2011/02/Alaska-Airlines-signs-flying-deal-with-SkyWest/44166418/1 Alaska Airlines signs flying deal with SkyWest
  29. ^ a b "CH-Aviation Fleet Lists". Retrieved 2009-09-19.
  30. ^ a b "ATW Daily News". Air Transport World. 2008-07-01. Retrieved 2008-10-13.
  31. ^ Endres, Günter G. (2001). The illustrated directory of modern commercial aircraft. Osceola, WI: MBI Pub. Co. p. 299. ISBN 978-0-7603-1125-7. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  32. ^ Gorlick, Arthur C. (1988-04-16). "Horizon Air Began Flying in '81". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  33. ^ a b Endicott 2001, p. 94
  34. ^ Guillen, Tomas (1990-06-12). "Faa: Window Trouble On Fairchild Planes Ongoing". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  35. ^ Song, Kyung M. (1999-09-27). "An Airline Divided -- Horizon Air Is No Longer Tiny, And It's No Longer One Big, Happy Family, Either". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2008-10-12.
  36. ^ "Dash 8 acquisition" (PDF) (Press release). CommutAir. 2006-09-12. Retrieved 2007-02-10.
  37. ^ "Horizon Air Unveils 'Comfortably Greener' Q400 Livery". Horizon Air. 2009-11-17. Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  38. ^ Horizon Air to add more college logos to planes Puget Sound Business Journal
  39. ^ "Idaho Vandals Get Horizon Plane". aUIalumni. 2010-10-05. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
  40. ^ "Horizon Air Flying Q400 with University of Washington Colors" (Press release). Alaska Air Group. 2009-02-03. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
  41. ^ "Horizon Air to Fly Boise State Colors, Honoring Its 25-Year Service to City". Office of Communications and Marketing. Boise State University. 2008-12-18. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
  42. ^ a b c d "MVP & MVP Gold Qualification Levels and Benefits". Alaska Air Group. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
  43. ^ "Board Room Membership Fees". Alaska Air Group. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
  44. ^ "Mileage Plan Airline Partners". Alaska Air Group. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
  45. ^ "Mileage Plan Program Benefits". Alaska Air Group. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
  46. ^ "Other Mileage Plan Information". Alaska Air Group. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
  47. ^ "Starbucks In Flight". The Seattle Times. 1990-05-17. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  48. ^ Goldsmith, Philip (2008). Northern California Wine Country (2nd ed.). Moon Handbooks. p. 402. ISBN 978-1-59880-078-4.
  49. ^ http://www.alaskaair.com/content/travel-info/food-beverage/food-horizon.aspx
  50. ^ http://www.alaskaair.com/content/travel-info/food-beverage/food-horizon.aspx
  51. ^ "Inflight Wi-Fi". Alaska Air Group. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
  52. ^ Endicott 2001, pg. 191-194
  53. ^ "DCA88MA052". National Transportation Safety Board. 1990-04-24. Retrieved 2008-10-11.
  54. ^ "18 Injured in Seattle Plane Crash". via the AP. New York Times, The. 1988-04-16. Retrieved 2008-10-11. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  55. ^ Tomas, Guillen (1990-05-23). "Passenger Nearly Sucked Out Of Horizon Airliner". Seattle Times, The. Retrieved 2008-10-11. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  56. ^ "NTSB Incident Report". Retrieved 2009-11-12.
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