SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 19, 2002--Going against the winds of the airline industry's retrenchment, Horizon Air today is flying at pre-Sept. 11 levels, with additional growth planned in April.

Latest figures for the Seattle-based regional airline reveal a 2 percent increase in scheduled flying for February 2002 compared to February 2001. For the year, Horizon expects to grow by nearly 13 percent.

The growth is measured in available seat miles, which is defined as one seat flown one mile.

"We are pleased to now be running at full speed," said Patrick Zachwieja, vice president of marketing and planning. "Our plan was to build our service back up in a very strategic way and it has worked well."

Immediately following Sept. 11, Horizon Air cut capacity by 25 percent. However, soon after, the airline was back in the air serving all its markets. In some instances, Horizon reallocated flights to markets with stronger demand, and in others, it seized the opportunity to start new service.

New markets started or announced since Sept. 11 include: Medford-Los Angeles (Nov. 20, 2001); Sacramento-Palm Springs (Jan. 6); Sacramento-Boise (Feb. 3); Portland-Tucson and San Jose-Tucson (Feb. 10); Boise-San Diego and Boise-San Francisco (April 1); and Boise-Denver and Portland-Denver (April 28).

Some airlines delayed or canceled new equipment orders in the wake of Sept. 11, but Horizon moved ahead with the fleet modernization program that it began in 2000. Horizon has already replaced its 37-seat Dash 8-100 turboprops and is in the process of replacing its 69-seat F-28 jets with a combination of 70-seat CRJ-700 regional jets and 70-seat Q400 high-speed turboprops. With their longer range, the CRJ-700s have allowed Horizon to reach out to markets like Denver and Tucson that were unreachable on a nonstop basis with F-28 jets.

To help speed time-sensitive business travelers through airport security, new security screening express lanes were added at the Seattle and Portland airports. The new Portland Airport security express lane is exclusively for Horizon passengers flying the Horizon Shuttle to Seattle and is located at the security checkpoint for the A, B and C concourses. The Sea-Tac security express lanes are located at the C and D concourse checkpoints and also at the North Satellite checkpoint. Those who qualify for these express lanes include Horizon passengers flying the Horizon Shuttle to Portland, as well as Horizon and Alaska MVP Gold-level Mileage Plan members. Mileage Plan members can register online to receive triple miles between Seattle and Portland now through March 31, 2002.

Horizon Air serves 41 cities throughout Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Alberta and British Columbia. Horizon Air and Alaska Airlines are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group, Inc.

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CONTACT:	For Horizon Air
	Cheryl Temple, 206/431-4672
	Dan Russo, 206/431-4513