Alaska Airlines is launching new international routes from Seattle to London Heathrow and Reykjavik, Iceland with service starting in May 2026.
- London Heathrow will be operated daily, year-round with a Boeing 787-9. This features the excellent Hawaiian Airlines new business product.
- Reykjavik will be summer seasonal daily flying with a Boeing 737-8 MAX. While Alaska partners with Icelandair, this route will primarily be about Iceland as a summer destination. A 737 MAX should be able to make the 3,631 mile flight but that is an absolute long time in a narrowbody!
Currently, British Airways operates two Seattle flights. Both Delta and Virgin fly the route as well. American Airlines could not make it work even in partnership with Alaska. American had planned to fly Seattle to Bangalore, Shanghai and London but no longer operates long haul from Seattle.
BA offers Alaska connectivity beyond London, and Alaska itself has the best connectivity in Seattle. And if they’re going to fly long haul they almost have to fly to London. But this is a competitive route.
Already Alaska has commenced long haul service to Tokyo, and starts flying to Seoul in mid-September. They launch Seattle – Rome in spring 2026. They’re clearly making very different use of the assets they acquired from Hawaiian Airlines than Hawaiian did, as expected.
Alaska is painting their 787-9s with a new livery, debuting in January, with the fleet to fully be in this new design by spring.
Their A330s which remain based in Honolulu, too, will get new seats in all cabins.
I’m gonna say it… that aircraft… looks ‘hot.’ Like, me like-y. Nice paint. Happy to see more ‘premium’ out there. Hope it goes well for them. It’s a ‘win’ for One World, too. And if BILT survives, might be worth transferring more of their points to AS.
If they were to offer kosher or other special meals, I might give them a try if the price were right.
just highlights how AA is the loser in all of this; the SEA network that AA thought they would build is going to be flown by AS on its own metal which means that AA will lose more of its position on the west coast. AS is obviously shooting for participation in the oneworld JVs and the US will not allow AA and AS to participate in the same JVs.
@Tim Dunn
What SEA network by AA? They did look into it with maybe flying to LHR and India and decided not to do it. The merger between AK and HA gives them access to those WB jets now. There’s no room for a third major player in SEA.
Of course, AA decided not to fly SEA across both the Atlantic and Pacific but AA most definitely talked about adding SEA to lots of international destinations as part of their relationship with AS.
and AS is or would be the 4th or 5th carrier in most of the longhaul SEA international markets where they just decided they want to fly after being “just a domestic airline” for decades.
@1990 – Polished aluminum and clear coats need to make a comeback.
I don’t recall the first time I saw an AS plane, I do recall going WTF!! Confusing, who, why, that man on its tail-feather … SW at least had a whale for a while. (Save the whales, collect the entire set …) with AS about to fly intercontinental it’s time for a new look. Looks great!
@Tim that is an absolute absurd take. Participate in the JV’s AS is connecting one city with OW hubs. American flys to TYO from DFW, JFK, LAX and to LHR from every major hub and some secondary cities. If you think that the JV will be replaced with an airline with little connectivity outside Seattle you’re insane. DL is going to get its lunch eaten in SEA and knowing this administration who knows if AS will be barred from joining a JV. You have multiple Euro carriers on one JV I don’t see why multiple American Companies cant. I honestly want whatever your smoking and the location of where to buy it because it must be some high grade stuff.
@PM
I wonder what the executives and employees of Spirit and JetBlue think of the “auto pen” administration?
Where did they get their Heathrow slot?
PM.
try reading.
The US will not allow two US airlines to have JVs on the same ROUTE as part of the same JV.
If AS is admitted to the oneworld JVs for SEA flights, AA will lose the ability to be a part of the JV ON SEA flights to the same foreign destination.
and, no, there are not multiple foreign airlines OPERATING on the same route in the same JV. From SEA, one foreign and/or one US airline operate on every route.
@Tim try writing a little more descriptive. You initial statement does not say that its the SAME ROUTE. “AS is obviously shooting for participation in the oneworld JVs and the US will not allow AA and AS to participate in the same JVs.”
Clearly stated as the same JVs. Not route. Don’t try to paint my statement commenting on your failure to include your complete thought or really backtracking and gaslighting. At the end of the day with AS going long haul AA can use its wide frames elsewhere and have the same connectivity as they would had they started long haul out of SEA. Go back to trying to sell masses on DL because your clearly out of your element here.
@Coffee we could go all day about failures of all administrations. My point was on this current admin being more merger and consolidation friendly. This is the same admin that gave us the NEA. JetBlue and Spirit is an entirely different animal which we can discuss at lengths about the pros and cons. That is as far as my political statements will go, trying to keep it focused on airline news.
@Denver Refugee — Ah, so, you prefer them to be ‘all natural.’ Niccce.
@Coffee Please — Tim’s correct; #45/47 is far more conducive to mergers, so long as those companies ‘bend the knee,’ rule of law be damned (pay your $1 million bribe, folks!) Yes, #44 and #46 were more willing to enforce laws against anti-competitive practices; probably was better for us consumers, but not always ‘best’ for the capital class or management who wants to profit off those big deals. None of this should be a surprise to you or anyone; feel free to try to make it partisan, but the establishment within both parties remains pro-corporation. *sigh*