thumb|right|Horizon Air General Office
Horizon Air is an American regional airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, United States, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group, and it is paid by fellow group member Alaska Airlines to staff, operate, and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed, and sold by Alaska Airlines. Planes operated by Horizon are co-branded as to differentiate Horizon's planes from those operated by Alaska's other regional airline partner, SkyWest Airlines.
Horizon Air started operations in September 1981, was purchased by the Alaska Air Group in November 1986, and continued to fly as a separately branded airline until 2011, when it shifted to the current capacity purchase agreement business model.
The airline is headquartered in the Seattle suburb of SeaTac, not far from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and the airline's primary maintenance base is at Portland International Airport. Horizon also considers Seattle–Tacoma and Portland airports its hubs.
History
Horizon Air was formed in May 1981 by Milt Kuolt, Joe Clark, and Bruce McCaw, with initial plans to fly to Hawaii but later changed to serve Washington state. The airline started operations on September 1, 1981, with three Fairchild F-27 aircraft. Its headquarters were in an area that is now within SeaTac, Washington.
Horizon Air's first route connected Yakima to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport and was followed a week later by Tri-Cities Airport in Pasco to Seattle. The general offices of Horizon Air were operated out of an old house behind Sea-Tac Airport. Horizon acquired Air Oregon on June 17, 1982, after both airlines were losing hundreds of thousands of dollars monthly, in order to consolidate and reduce their operating deficit. Horizon agreed to purchase Transwestern Airlines of Utah in September 1983, once again to try to reduce operating deficit of the airline.
A single Fokker F28 twin jet, purchased in July 1984 from an African carrier, was the first jet owned by Horizon Air (however, the first jet operated by Horizon was a wet leased Douglas DC-9-10).
An initial public offering occurred in 1985 to secure operating capital, which after only one profitable year since founding, was needed to keep the airline afloat. That summer<!-- of 1985-->, Horizon entered into its first codeshare agreement with United Airlines, and on September 8, Horizon signed an agreement with de Havilland Canada to begin purchasing the airline's first brand new aircraft, the de Havilland Canada Dash 8-100 twin turboprop.
thumb|left|[[Fokker F28 Fellowship|Fokker F28 at Oakland International Airport in 1995]]
Late in 1985, Horizon entered into an agreement to purchase their chief competitor in Washington, Cascade Airways, but by early 1986 were released from the agreement. Merger talks between the two had begun in late 1982.
Acquisition
Alaska Airlines struck a deal to acquire Horizon Air in November 1986. The year before, Alaska had undergone a major corporate restructuring with the airline now being owned by the Alaska Air Group, an airline holding company. Under the agreement, the Alaska Air Group became the owner of Horizon Air after approval by the Transportation Department in late December. The Alaska Air Group continued to operate Horizon as a separately branded airline, with a codesharing agreement with its new sister airline, Alaska, while ending its codeshare with United Airlines.
In 1988, Horizon signed a code share agreement with Northwest Airlines.
International service was expanded in May 1989 with flights to Vancouver and Victoria in British Columbia, using both Dash 8-100 and Fairchild Metroliner turboprop aircraft.
Horizon was the launch customer for the Dornier 328 turboprop, intending to replace the Metroliners with this new aircraft which promised speed and comfort on par with jetliners. In recognition of the order, Dornier painted its second prototype of the 328 in Horizon colors. Twelve aircraft were delivered between November 1993 and November 1995, but they were quickly phased out in late 1997, along with the remaining Metroliners, in favor of fleet standardization to the Dash 8 series of turboprops.
Throughout its history, Horizon has either operated as a standalone carrier or as a regional affiliate of Alaska Airlines, except between 2004 and 2007 when it operated Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft on behalf of Frontier Airlines.
Brand phase-out
thumb|[[De Havilland Canada Dash 8#Series 400|Bombardier Q400 in Alaska Airlines' livery, shortly after the retirement of the Horizon Air brand in 2011]]
In late 2010, Horizon's parent company, the Alaska Air Group, made the decision to no longer operate Horizon as a separate regional airline. As part of the change to the new business model, the Horizon Air brand was retired and all Horizon planes were repainted with a co-branded "Alaska " livery. The move left Horizon with a fleet consisting of a single type of aircraft; the Bombardier Q400 turboprop.
thumb|left|Horizon Air [[Embraer E-Jet family#E175|Embraer 175 in Alaska Airlines' livery]]
Horizon announced in April 2016 that it would expand its fleet and once again operate regional jets, placing an order for 30 Embraer 175 airplanes.
The airline experienced a period of turmoil in 2017. Amid unprecedented growth (spurred by the addition of the new aircraft), Horizon experienced a severe pilot shortage, forcing the airline to cancel hundreds of flights and delay delivery of new aircraft. The pilot shortage was part of a broader problem affecting all regional airlines, but hit Horizon particularly hard. After the airline industry started to rebound in 2013 after a decade long downturn, mainline air carriers started to hire pilots, mostly from regional carriers which offer low wages and limited opportunities for advancement. More experienced regional carrier pilots moved to higher paying mainlines. Horizon responded with drastically increased pay for flight crews and worked with Alaska, its sister airline, to create more opportunities for advancement. As a result, there is an influx of new, young pilots with less experience.
At the end of the troubled year, Horizon's CEO Dave Campbell announced that he would step down effective January 5, 2018, for personal reasons. Gary Beck became CEO in January 2018. In November 2019, former retiree of the company Joe Sprague returned to Horizon Air as president.
Destinations
Horizon's 45 destinations are located in the U.S. states of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia.
Services
On-board meals and beverages
Flight time permitting, passengers in the main cabin are offered a complimentary small snack (cookie, nuts or a snack mix) and a beverage.
Horizon, like its parent airline Alaska, focuses on serving and selling items produced on and inspired by the West Coast. Coffee from Portland-based Stumptown Coffee Roasters is served on all flights.
Horizon's aircraft are equipped with a First Class cabin and Premium Class cabin and offer a similar onboard experience to that of Alaska, with complimentary meals in First Class and complimentary alcoholic beverages in both classes.
On-board Internet access
Horizon's aircraft are equipped with an in-flight Wi-Fi and streaming entertainment system. Alaska and Horizon use Gogo Inflight Internet, a land-based internet service, covering all routes served by the airline. The service is fee-based for all passengers, depending on the length of the flight.
Fleet
Current fleet
, Horizon Air operates the following aircraft:
{| class="wikitable" style="border-collapse:collapse;text-align:center;margin:auto;"
! rowspan="2" |Aircraft
! rowspan="2" |In service
! rowspan="2" |Orders
! colspan="4" |Passengers
! rowspan="2" |Notes
|-
!
!
!
!Total
|-
|Embraer 175
|47
|3
|12
|16
|48
|76
|Deliveries until 2026.
|-
!Total
!47
!3
! colspan="5" |
|}
The Embraer 175 is a regional jet operated in a three-class configuration (first class, premium class, and main cabin) with a total of 76 all leather, reclining seats. The premium class and main cabin sections of the aircraft have two seats either side of the aisle, while the first class section has a single seat on one side of the aisle and two seats on the other.
Former fleet
Horizon Air has previously operated the following aircraft:
<!-- Please Update with any missing information-->
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:auto;"
!Aircraft
!Total
!Introduced
!Retired
!Notes
|-
|BAC One-Eleven
|2
|1986
|1986
|regional jet, leased from Cascade Airways
|-
|Bombardier CRJ700
|21
|2001
|2011
|regional jet
|-
|De Havilland Canada Dash 8-200
|28
|1997
|2011
|turboprop
|-
|Fokker F-27
|13
|1981
|1988
|turboprop, first aircraft type operated by the airline
|-
|Dornier 328
|12
|1993
|1997
|turboprop
|-
|Fairchild Metroliner II
|
|
|
|formerly operated by Air Oregon, commuter turboprop
|-
|Fairchild Metroliner III
|33
|
|1997
|commuter turboprop
|-
|Fokker F28
|22
|1986
|2003
|regional jet
|-
|McDonnell Douglas DC-9-10
|1
|1984
|1984
|first jet aircraft type operated by the airline
- On April 15, 1988, Flight 2658, a Dash 8-100 (N819PH – Great City of Sun Valley), en route from Seattle to Spokane with 37 passengers and 3 crew members, crashed after attempting an emergency landing at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac). The number two (right side/starboard) engine caught fire (due to a manufacturing defect) after take-off from Seattle. Loss of hydraulic pressure due to the fire caused the aircraft to veer off the runway, across the grass, across Taxiway B, and crashed into the B7 and B9 jetways, destroying the plane. There were four serious injuries but no fatalities.
- On May 23, 1990, a Fairchild Metroliner III on a flight from Portland to Seattle suffered a window blowout at above Olympia. The flight made an emergency descent and landing to its planned destination of Sea-Tac Airport. The passenger seated next to the window, who was partially sucked out of the plane for a brief period, was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for his injuries and released.
- On August 10, 2018, a Horizon Air Bombardier Q400 aircraft registered N449QX was stolen from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport by Richard Russell, a ground service agent for Horizon. The incident prompted F-15 fighter jets to scramble and intercept the aircraft. After being in contact with air traffic control for over an hour, the aircraft crashed on Ketron Island in Pierce County, Washington, killing Russell, the only person on the aircraft.
- On October 22, 2023, Flight 2059 was operating from Paine Field in Everett, Washington to San Francisco International Airport when an off-duty pilot sitting in the jumpseat inside the flight deck, Joe Emerson, reportedly tried to pull both engine fire extinguisher handles on the overhead panel. The Embraer 175 aircraft was operating at 31,000 feet at the time, and if Emerson was successful at activating the fire extinguishers, both engines would have shut down. The crew was able to subdue him and land at the Portland International Airport in Oregon, where Emerson was arrested and later charged with 83 counts of attempted murder.
Lawsuits
In November 2023, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Horizon and Alaska Airlines on behalf of the passengers on board Flight 2059, alleging that the passengers' lives were put at risk by an off-duty pilot who was allowed to ride in the cockpit and who attempted to shut off the engines during flight on October 22, 2023, and seeking an injunction that would require the airlines to "conduct reasonable examinations" of all employees with access to the cockpit immediately prior to boarding.
In July 2024, Horizon was sued by a flight attendant for the airline, who alleged that she was "repeatedly and severely" sexually harassed by two Horizon pilots from September 2023 through February of 2024 and that Horizon's human resources department "took no action" to protect her.
See also
- Air transportation in the United States
References
Bibliography
External links
- NTSB accident report of Flight 2658