SEATTLE, Apr 28, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Orange County's John Wayne Airport became an international airport today with the launch of Alaska Airlines' daily nonstop service to Vancouver.

The new service connects the West Coast theme-park capital with its cruise capital.

Alaska is celebrating the new service with a $107 inaugural fare. The fare is each way based on roundtrip purchase, and tickets must be purchased by May 9 and travel completed by August 30.

In conjunction with the start of service, Alaska is offering double Mileage Plan miles on the Orange County-Vancouver nonstop flight through June 15.

Alaska will operate the route using 120-seat Next Generation Boeing 737-700s, including 12 First Class seats.

The northbound flight, Alaska Flight 597, departs Orange County at 10:00 a.m. and arrives in Vancouver at 2:58 p.m. The southbound flight, Alaska Flight 598, departs Vancouver at 1:38 p.m. and arrives in Orange County at 4:33 p.m.

With the addition of the Vancouver flight, Alaska now serves Orange County with 18 daily flights. The carrier's other nonstop destinations are Oakland, Portland and Seattle.

The inaugural fare requires roundtrip purchase, a 14-day advance purchase and a Friday or Saturday night stay. Tickets are non-refundable but can be changed for $50 plus any applicable changes in fare. Seats are limited and may not be available on all flights and on all days. Fare does not include airport passenger facility charges of up to $18; the federal segment tax of up to $3 per takeoff and landing; the September 11th Security Fee of $2.50 per enplanement, up to $10; customs and immigration fee of $7; Vancouver Airport improvement fee of $8, or the Canadian Security charge of $8 for travel after June 1. Fare shown is in USD.

Double Miles are valid only for Mileage Plan members on flights 597 and 598 between Orange County and Vancouver. Flights must be flown by June 15 and credited to Mileage Plan. Other restrictions apply. Mileage Plan enrollment is available online at www.alaskaair.com.

The nation's ninth largest carrier, Alaska celebrates its 70th anniversary this year. The carrier was recently ranked No. 1 in the annual Airline Quality Ratings compiled by Wichita State University and the University of Nebraska at Omaha. And readers of Travel+Leisure magazine recently named Alaska the "World's Best Domestic Airline." Alaska and its regional partner, Horizon Air, together serve 80 cities in the Lower 48, Alaska, Canada and Mexico. For reservations go to www.alaskaair.com, call Alaska's toll-free reservations line at 1-800/ALASKAAIR (1-800/252-7522) or call your travel agent.

For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines Newsroom on the Internet at http://newsroom.alaskaair.com.

CONTACT: Alaska Airlines, Seattle Jack Walsh, 206/901-8753 Jack Evans, 206/433-3134