Alaska, American Forge West Coast International Alliances

Alaska Airlines and American Airlines are aligning  to create more choice for West Coast customers.

The expanded relationship between the airlines will offer customers several benefits, including:

 Alaska Airlines pending entrance into the oneworld® alliance, the fast-growing and highly rated global airline alliance that, by summer 2021, will connect Alaska guests to more than 1,200 destinations worldwide

 American will launch the first service from Seattle (SEA) to Bangalore, India (BLR) beginning October 2020. A new American route from SEA to the global business hub London Heathrow (LHR) will begin flying in March 2021

 The airlines will continue their domestic codeshare that offers customers hassle-free booking and travel between the two networks. The codeshare will expand to include international routes from Los Angeles (LAX) and SEA

 Alaska and American loyalty members will enjoy benefits across both airlines, including the ability to earn and use miles on both airlines’ full networks, elite status reciprocity and lounge access to nearly 50 American Admirals Club lounges worldwide and seven Alaska Lounges in the U.S.

The alliance will give West Coast travelers more choices when traveling internationally, offer seamless access across a broader network and provide strategic growth for both airlines.

“Alaska has always been proud to serve Seattle, the city that we call home. We’re giving our guests more choice, broader use of loyalty benefits, and seamless global service with American and oneworld,” said Ben Minicucci, president of Alaska Airlines. “Additionally, international service to global business and tech hubs Heathrow and Bangalore is a tremendous win for the growing Seattle region and the West Coast.”

Seattle as International Gateway

Seattle’s first-ever direct flight to BLR will be available for purchase later this month, with daily flights beginning October 2020. Daily service between SEA and LHR will be available for purchase in May 2020 for flights starting March 2021.

“Beginning West Coast international service from Seattle will complement American’s strong existing international network from LAX,” said Vasu Raja, American’s Senior Vice President, Network Strategy. “India is a grossly underserved market, despite the number of businesses with a major presence in both India and the West Coast. By adding Seattle to Bangalore, we’re giving customers from more than 70 U.S. cities access to India in one stop or less — versus the two, three or four stops they’d have to make to get there in the past.”

Better Benefits

Alaska and American will continue their domestic codeshare relationship, which was scheduled to shrink in March of 2020. The airlines will expand codeshare to West Coast international routes from SEA and LAX for broader international access and choice for customers. Codeshare gives customers seamless access to more destinations and reciprocal frequent flyer program benefits. Customers with lounge membership will enjoy shared access to nearly 50 American Admirals Club lounges worldwide and seven Alaska Lounges in the U.S. for same-day travel on American or Alaska flights.

However, the implementation of the expanded relationship and other arrangements remain  subject to the negotiation and execution of definitive documentation and governmental review.

Alaska Airlines and its regional partners fly to more than 116 destinations with an average of 1,300 daily flights across the United States and to Mexico, Canada and Costa Rica.