Alaska Airlines parent Alaska Air Group's first-quarter managed corporate travel revenue increased 19 percent year over year alongside strengthening premium-class and international demand, company executives said Tuesday during an earnings call.
Alaska chief commercial officer Andrew Harrison said corporate demand in Q1 showed "broad-based strength across all industries, in particular manufacturing, financial services and technology."
Harrison pointed to the carrier's new international service as a key driver of corporate demand. Load factors on Alaska's Seattle-Tokyo Narita route, launched in May 2025, and its Seattle-Seoul route, launched in September and operated by subsidiary Hawaiian Airlines, each exceeded 90 percent in Q1, he said.
"Our international expansion has meaningfully increased Alaska's relevance with corporate customers," Harrison said. "As a result, we are competing for and in some cases, exceeding our fair market share in business travel on these long-haul routes, particularly in the U.S. point of sale. We're also seeing improved domestic corporate relevance as global connectivity strengthens our value proposition for corporate travelers."
He added that Atmos for Business, the self-managed business travel loyalty program for small and midsize companies the company introduced in September, "beginning to see traction" in the market segment "through greater sign-ups."
Q1 premium-class demand increased 8 percent year over year, Harrison said.
Fuel and Capacity
The company's first-quarter fuel costs increased more than $100 million year over year, CEO Ben Minicucci said, "and we expect incremental fuel costs of $600 million or more in the second quarter." Like its large-carrier U.S. competitors, Alaska this month raised checked-bag fees and eliminated a discount for prepaying such fees to mitigate rising jet fuel prices, and executives said they would adjust capacity further address the issue.
Alaska's Q1 total capacity growth was 1.7 percent as measured in available seat miles, slightly lower than the projected 2 percent growth.
For the second quarter, Harrison projected the company's capacity to increase 1 percent year over year, "among the lowest growth rates in the industry" and down 1 percentage point from its prior projection, with the growth confined to long-haul Seattle international service.
"Our Q2 North America capacity is down slightly year-over-year," Harrison said. "The overwhelming majority of our capacity remains deployed in core hubs where we have scale, relevance and strong loyalty."
The company suspended its full-year guidance due in part to fluctuating fuel prices. "For the second quarter, the range of potential financial outcomes remains wide and difficult to predict, as recent geopolitical factors have resulted in sharp and unpredictable changes in fuel prices," the company said in a statement.
Still, Alaska, said Q2 unit revenues "are trending to be up high single digits year-over-year, with a path to increasing 10 percent year-over-year, assuming demand strength and yield trends sustain the rest of the period."
Alaska Q1 Metrics
Alaska Air Group reported first-quarter passenger revenue of more than $2.9 billion, up 4 percent year over year. Total operating revenue increased 5 percent to $3.3 billion.
The company's net loss was $193 million, compared with a net loss of $166 million one year prior.
Alaska Air Group's first-quarter average fuel cost was $2.98 per gallon. "April fuel is expected to be approximately $4.75 per gallon, and we expect the quarter to average approximately $4.50 based on the forward curve today," the company said in a statement.
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