Alaska Airlines nears end of premium seat push, begins Starlink Wi-Fi rollout
If you haven't stepped on an Alaska Airlines plane in awhile, chances are you'll notice more premium seats next time you board.
The Seattle-based carrier is nearing the finish line of a two-year push to retrofit its planes with more first-class and extra-legroom seats.
It's part of an effort to add 1.3 million higher-priced seats to the airline's schedule each year.
As of Friday, Alaska had completed cabin updates on 218 of its Boeing 737 jets, executives shared.
That means the carrier is about 86% of the way done with the refits, which include adding two additional rows of first-class seats on 737-800 aircraft.
On the 737-800s, by the way, these seats are a new first-class product for the carrier, featuring footrests — a touch more commonly found in competitors' international premium economy cabins.
Elsewhere, Alaska is adding extra rows of extra legroom "Premium" class seats on its larger 737-900 and MAX 9 planes, which already had four full rows of the first-class recliners up front.
"All these retrofits will be finished in time for selling into the summer travel [season]," Alaska Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Harrison said Friday on the company's earnings call.
Like most U.S. airlines, Alaska is hoping to tap into customers' willingness to pay up for higher-end seats.
As a reminder, all elite status members of Atmos Rewards — the shared loyalty program of Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines — are eligible for space-available complimentary upgrades into the carrier's Premium and First-Class cabins.
And, since Alaska is a member of the Oneworld alliance, elite members from top partner American Airlines' AAdvantage program are upgrade-eligible, too.
Related: Why American Airlines flyers should pay attention to Atmos Rewards
Alaska gives Starlink Wi-Fi update
The other big upgrade Alaska is adding to its jets: free Wi-Fi from Starlink.
Hawaiian, which Alaska Air Group acquired in 2024, had already begun installing the ultra-fast internet on many of its planes prior to the merger.
The airlines' corporate leaders last summer said they planned to add the Starlink satellites to Alaska-branded jets, too (Alaska and Hawaiian continue to fly under their own, distinct airline brands despite being part of one company).
Starlink installations started on Alaska planes late last year, and carrier has added the high-speed tech to two-dozen aircraft, to date, executives confirmed Friday.
Between Alaska- and Hawaiian-branded planes, 66 aircraft (16% of the combined fleet) now have Starlink Wi-Fi.
The service is free for all flyers with an Atmos Rewards account.
Alaska expects half of all planes will be equipped by the end of this year, with all planes Starlink-equipped by the end of 2027.
If you're on a plane that doesn't have Starlink, in the meantime, Alaska typically charges $8 for full-access browsing. But you can send and receive messages for free while inflight.
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