Alaska Airlines

Get ready to “Apolo-ize” yourself at SEA and PDX

February 2, 2010Harriet BaskasAirlines, Free Stuff, Fun Stuff, SportsAlaska Airlines, Apolo Ohno, soul patch, speed skating, Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics

Are you getting excited about the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver?

The folks at Alaska Airlines are.

Today (Tuesday, February 2, 2010), airline representatives will be at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) and Portland International Airport (PDX) asking passengers to help cheer on speed skater and Pacific Northwest native Apolo Ohno by “Apolo-izing” themselves with free stick-on Apolo Ohno ‘soul patches.’

And don’t worry if you’re not planning to be at either of those airports on Tuesday.

Like the folks pictured above, you can go on-line and “Apolo-ize’ yourself anytime with the handy Apolo-ize tool.

Greetings from the North Pole

December 13, 2009Harriet BaskasAir Travel, Events, Fun StuffAlaska Airlines, elf, North Pole, Spokane Fantasy Flight, TSA

Yesterday I had the great honor of joining more than 60 kids from Spokane, Washington on a quick trip to the North Pole.

We flew, of course. On a special Alaska Airlines flight. And for most of those kids it was their first time going to the airport, the first time flying on a plane, and of course, the first time going to the North Pole. So Santa sent some elves to help out with some of the tricky parts, like going through security.

The North Pole was a magical as you’d think (more on that later in the week) but, because I was dressed as an (undercover) elf I was able to sneak into Santa’s Flight Center and snap a few photos that offer some insight into the Christmas Eve routine.

Thanks to the folks at the Spokane Fantasy Flight for letting me ride along. Especially, Tammikins, my elf guide there on the right.

Boeing Factory Tour: Aviation Geekfest report

December 7, 2009Harriet BaskasAir Travel, Airlines, Aviation history, Events, Planespotting787 Dreamliner, Alaska Airlines, Aviation Geekfest, Boeing Factory Tour, Future of Flight, Horizon Air

On Sunday I was pleased to be able to join 46 other folks on an tour of the Boeing factory in Mukilteo, Washington as part of Aviation Geekfest hosted by Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air and the Future of Flight Aviation Center.

In a testament to the power of social media – or the fact that aviation geeks are quick on the trigger – the free tickets for the event “sold out” in less than a minute.

Part of the attraction: attendees were promised a chance at winning gift cards from Alaska Airlines, a spiffy model of an Alaska Airlines 737-900, and – get this – two tickets on the 1^st 787 flight.

No one was allowed to bring cameras or telephones with cameras on the tour. So I can’t show you photos of new 787 Dreamliner airplanes in production. I did take a notepad along. But sadly, I can’t draw.

Next time, I’m taking a sketch artist along, but in the meantime, here’s a better drawing of the airplane, courtesy of the CD that tour guide Mike (friendly, smart, informative and no where near as corny as he could have been given his audience) handed each of us at the end of the tour.

And here’s a photo of the 787 Dreamliner plane that should be taking off any moment now. Photo courtesy Aviation Geekfest attendee and Twitter user @imperfectsense.

Alaska Airlines unveils an Apolo Ohno plane

November 18, 2009Harriet BaskasAir Travel, Celebrities, Fun Stuff, Sports2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, Alaska Airlines, Apolo Ohno, Follow Apolo

Seattle is pretty proud of Apolo Anton Ohno, who began his speed-skating career here when he was just 14 and went on to win numerous world and national championships and five Olympic medals. (Oh yeah, he was also on the Dancing with the Stars TV show.)

Now he’s getting ready for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics games.

To cheer him on, Alaska Airlines has painted one of its Boeing 737-800 with a giant image of Ohno and, during the unveiling yesterday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, handed out Ohno trading card, copies of Ohno’s signature bandana, and press-on faux facial hair (in honor of Ohno’s infamous “soul patch.”) .

Sadly, I missed that gala event, but like everyone else I can now “Follow Apolo” on a special web site that will track his progress.

Flight training at Alaska Airlines – not for sissies

June 24, 2009Harriet BaskasSafety#asagn, Alaska Airlines, flight training, Twitter

Last night was Aviation Geek Night at the Alaska Airlines training center in Seattle. A dozen folks who follow Alaska Airlines on Twitter (http://twitter.com/alaskaair) were invited to experience what it’s like to pilot a $30 million dollar aircraft and get some Flight Attendant safety training.

We didn’t get any face time with these guys:

But flight attendant instructors Megan, Claudia, and Clinton assured us that real flight attendants were well trained in how to defend themselves – and passengers – against bad guys.

We did get to practice putting out an on-board fire and learned how to open and set aside the 40 pound window exit.

Then we each had a chance to slide down the emergency chute.

All skills I’m glad I’ve practiced and, of course, hope I’ll never get to use.

At the end of the night, I did get a chance to sit in the captain’s seat of the flight simulator. Capt. Bill Morgan calmly and gently guided me and co-pilot Kenji_Onozawa through a landing at Reagan National Airport and Seattle-Tacoma Int’l Airport. Good thing Kenji was cool and capable. Because it turns out, I was too short to reach the brakes on the airplane and, once on the ground, I got nauseous guiding the plane to the gate.

Still, they let me graduate with a newly minted Certificate of Geekiness, which I will be carrying with me next time I fly.

Souvenir Sunday: toys from Alaska Airlines & tales from Siena

June 21, 2009Harriet BaskasSouvenirsAlaska Airlines, construction toys, Indianapolis International Airport, Italy, Siena

Happy Souvenir Sunday!

Every Sunday Stuck at the Airport unpacks the carry-on and re-packs for a fresh new adventure. It’s also when we look over the souvenirs we’ve accumulated through the week.

This week, we have this cute little Air Force One that photographer and world traveler Daniel Incandela found for sale at the Indianapolis International Airport.

At a Tweetup (a real-world gathering of folks who follow each other on Twitter) hosted by Alaska Airlines in Seattle, I came away with this great souvenir: a Best-Lock construction toy of an Alaska Airlines airplane.

I’m not sure what my favorite part of this souvenir is. The cute little airplane (that sells on-line for less than $5), the little pilot inside, or the fact that the package has a message about the dangers of plastic bags printed in 36 different languages!

And, because sometimes the best souvenirs are the stories our friends bring home from their trips, I’m including this link to Bob Rini’s Nine Pound Hammer blog entry about his stop in Siena, “the arch rival of Florence.”

While there he learned the history of Siena through the story of how the 17 contrade (neighborhoods) compete against each other in a wild-sounding bareback horse race, the Palio, that dates back to 1283. Those neighborhoods each have their own flags and costumes; a tradition we now think every city should adopt.

(Courtesy Bob Rini; Nine Pound Hammer)

Have you found a great souvenir while stuck at the airport?

If it is: under $10; not a generic item (i.e. shot glass or mug); and “of” that airport, city or region, then please send a photo and a note about why you chose that souvenir. It may just show up on a future Souvenir Sunday.

Airports and airlines scramble over swine flu

April 28, 2009Harriet BaskasAlerts, Health, Well-Mannered TravelerAlaska Airlines, Mexico, swine flu

As I reported today on MSNBC.com, airports and airlines are scrambling to respond to the government-issued alerts about travel to and from Mexico in the wake of the swine-flu outbreak there.

It’s hard to know what will happen next, but most airlines with flights to Mexico have posted policies offering to waive the change fee for travelers who want to adjust their itineraries or exchange their ticket for a different destination. While Alaska Airlines is allowing travelers to make changes to an itinerary through May 20^th, most other airlines are asking travelers to make new plans by next Wednesday, May 6^th.

Stay tuned though: as the story unfolds and if, for example, the U.S. government places formal restrictions on travel to and from Mexico, the airlines may have to extend those offers.

In-flight Wi-Fi on Alaska Airlines: free. For now.

April 15, 2009Harriet BaskasFree Stuff, Wi-FiAlaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines has been testing Row 44’s inflight Wi-Fi since late February on one Boeing 737-700 and plans to add the service on additional aircraft in the coming months.

In the meantime, travelers can use the in-flight Wi-Fi for free in exchange for answering a few survey questions about what they think of the service and how much they might be willing to pay.

So far, more than 2,100 passengers have used the service and completed a survey. The findings? In a press release the airline says folks like having in-flight Wi-Fi.

No big surprise there.

Now comes the hard part: deciding what to charge for the service.

The airline says it plans to set a final price for the service later this year. For now, they’re still testing the service, so enjoy it free while you can.

To find out which routes the Wi-Fi plane is flying each day, sign up for the airline’s Twitter feed. And if you use the Wi-Fi, be sure to answer the “What would you pay?” question as honestly as you can.

And for an update on what’s going on with in-flight Wi-Fi in other parts of the airline system, please see my most recent “Flying the Wi-Fi Skies” story on MSNBC.com.

Free Wi-Fi coming to Oakland Airport next week (not SEA)

April 3, 2009Harriet BaskasFree Stuff, Wi-FiAlaska Airlines, Oakland International Airport, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

At last night’s charter meeting of SCOOT (Seattle Consortium of Online Travel) Seattle folks were jumping with joy when an Alaska Airlines’ rep announced that the airline would be picking up the Wi-Fi tab at Sea-Tac airport for the next few months.

Seems she may have just been swept up in the excitement of the moment, because today Tech Flash is reporting that, no, there will not be free Wi-Fi at SEA for the next few months. Instead, Alaska will be sponsoring free Wi-Fi at Oakland International Airport from April 13th through July 5, 2009.

Restless Mt. Redoubt nixes more flights

April 1, 2009Harriet BaskasCancellations, WeatherAlaska Airlines, Mt. Redoubt

Alaska’s Mt. Redoubt just won’t settle down. Here’s a Twitter-ed update Alaska Airlines sent out Tuesday about the impact of volcano eruptions on flights:

Nighttime flts in/out of ANC canceled due to Mt. Redoubt. Check flt status in a.m. b/4 leaving home…

This is getting sort of old. Flights into and out of ANC has been canceled repeatedly over the past week. In fact, as of Monday, Alaska Airlines had canceled more than 250 flights since March 22, affecting more than 10,000 passengers and leaving folks stuck in airports such as Seattle, Phoenix and, of course, Anchorage.

According to this KTUU.com report, those stranded passengers include the Alaska Aces hockey team, which had been scheduled to fly back from Phoenix but has decided to stay in the Lower 48 rather than risk getting stuck in Anchorage and not be able to play at Utah this weekend

In the meantime, they’re getting some great photos!

Mt. Redoubt- March 30th. Photo by Heather Bleick; courtesy of the Alaska Volcano Observatory / U.S. Geological Survey.