History of Alaska Airlines-Key Points

For more than 75 years, Alaska Airlines and its people have been guided through thick and thin by a shared commitment to integrity, caring, resourcefulness, professionalism and spirit. Especially spirit - an Alaskan spirit, born in the land the airline is named after - a place where "can-do" and "neighbor-helping-neighbor" are facts of life.

The foundation of this success was laid in 1932, when Mac McGee started flying his three-seat Stinson between Anchorage and Bristol Bay, Alaska (his plane had McGee Airways painted on the side). Finances were tight, but perseverance ruled the day—Mac and his team often worked round-the-clock, even though the next paycheck might be weeks away.

A merger with Star Air Service in 1934 created the largest airline in Alaska. After several more mergers, the name was changed a couple of times—until they found one that stuck: Alaska Airlines.

By the late 1940s, using surplus military aircraft, Alaska had branched into worldwide charter work, including the Berlin Airlift in 1948 and Operation Magic Carpet, the airlift of thousands of Yemenite Jews, to Israel in 1949. Known as the lost tribe of Israel, they had wandered the deserts for at least two centuries after being driven out of Palestine. Ironically, their faith included a prophecy that they would be returned to their Holy Land on the wings of eagles. They thought that the plane was this, so they painted an eagle above the door of the aircraft to reassure the jews as they climbed aboard.

The airlines other great adventure of the late 1940's was the Berlin Airlift. It was a very dangerous operation, planes were often shot at and weren't allowed to land on arab soil as the crew and passangers would all be killed. Days often lasted between 16 and 20 hours and the one-way flights, in twin-engine C-46 or DC-4 aircraft, covered nearly 3,000 miles.

In the late 1960s, Alaska strengthened its operating base by merging with Alaska Coastal-Ellis and Cordova airlines, legendary Southeast Alaska carriers.

When Fairbanks businessmen Ron Cosgrave and Bruce Kennedy came on board in 1972, the airline was in a financial fight for its life. They went to work setting goals and bringing people together. They won back the trust of creditors and improved on-time performance. One break that went their way was the construction of the trans-Alaska Pipeline; carrying supplies, equipment and workers gave Alaska a shot in the arm.

Bottom line, customer service became key in this new era. And it put the airline on course for what would be a nearly unprecedented record in the industry: 19 straight years of profitability.

In 1979, the airline industry was deregulated. For many carriers, this was the end of the road. For Alaska, it was a new beginning. The airline expanded methodically throughout the West Coast and in 1987 joined forces with two carriers similarly committed to outstanding customer service - Horizon Air and Jet America.

By the end of the 80s, Alaska had tripled in size. Its fleet had increased five-fold. And the route map included scheduled service to Mexico and Russia.

In 2001, it set its sights eastward with new service to Washington, D.C., and hasn't looked back since, establishing footholds in other major East Coast and Midwestern cities. More recently, the smiling Eskimo headed west across the Pacific Ocean with new service to Hawaii.