Category: Oneworld

The Details

• Flight: AS1264
• Aircraft: B737-800
• Class: Premium
• Seat: 9A
• Route: Seattle Tacoma (SEA)-San Diego (SAN)
• Distance: 1,100miles
• Duration: 2hr 9min
• Departure: 9:38PM
• Arrival: 11:47PM

The Preflight

I had a one-hour 45-minute layover between my flight from Indy to Seattle and from Seattle to San Diego. Thanks to my Priority Pass from the Chase Ritz Carlton Card, I had a $28 dining credit to use at the restaurant Bambuza which served Vietnamese food. Dinner consisted of a nice warm bowl of beef pho with fresh bean sprouts and cilantro.

Boarding started at 8:46PM. Today our B737-800, registration N538AS, was in the Star Wars Galaxy Edge livery.

The Flight

While the outside of the aircraft was painted in an interesting Star Wars livery, the interior was the usual Alaska Airlines mood lighting and slimline seats. The main cabin was arranged in a 3-3 configuration with rows 6-10 designated Premium seats that offered 34.5″ of pitch. Standard economy seats had 31″ of pitch.

The Recaro BL3530 slimline seats were 17.7″ wide. Each seat had a simple tray table with two cup holders as well as a USB port and 110V outlet.

We pushed back at 9:24PM with takeoff at 9:38PM.

Premium seat passengers are offered complimentary alcohol including spirits. I had a Buffalo Trace with Coke Zero served alongside crackers.

The rest of the flight was entirely uneventful with pitch-black clouds covering any city landscape we might have seen.

We landed uneventfully at 11:47PM followed by a short four minute to gate 22. Thanks for the ride!

I enjoyed this Premium class flight with Alaska Airlines down the West Coast. The generous pitch and complimentary alcohol made for a relaxing two-hour flight.

The Details

• Flight: AS500
• Aircraft: B737-900
• Class: Main Cabin
• Seat: 17A
• Route: Indianapolis (IND)-Seattle Tacoma (SEA)
• Distance: 1,915miles
• Duration: 4hrs 25min
• Departure: 6:28PM
• Arrival: 7:53PM

The Preflight

For this trip, I was going back home to San Diego again to visit family. Since I had a few Alaska Airlines gift cards left over from previous Costco sales ($500 for $450), I booked with Alaska on the flight down. The routing would be IND-SEA-SEA with a two-hour layover in Seattle. However, on the morning of the flight, I got an email notification from Alaska stating the flight was going to be delayed by an hour.

I arrived at the terminal just 50 minutes prior to departure and within 10 minutes was clear through TSA thanks to Precheck. Our flight was departing from B5 at one end of the terminal. Our aircraft was a true vintage B737-900, one of just 52 ever produced prior to the more popular B737-900ER. Registration N317AS, she was delivered to Alaska Airlines 20 years ago in March 2003.

Our flight number was the aptly numbered AS500 after the Indy 500. Boarding began at 5:48PM.

The Flight

Alaska Airlines offers a total of 16 Domestic First and 162 economy seats in a two-cabin configuration on board their B737-900s, -990ERs, and -9MAXs. The economy cabin is further split between 24 “Premium” extra-legroom seats in the first four rows and 138 Main Cabin seats arranged in a 3-3 configuration. I was seated in 17A, which was the second exit row on the aircraft. Both exit rows and the five rows between Premium and the exit row were reserved for Oneworld elites.

Alaska Airlines features BL3530 slimline seats in their Main Cabin which are each 17.7 inches wide.

Both exit rows also offer over 37.5 inches of pitch which is the most of any economy row including Premium seats.

The slimline seats were well designed with a simple two-drink tray table, 110V outlet, USB port, and storage pocket.

The flight ended up being less than 50% full on this Wednesday evening which meant boarding was very quick at under 20 minutes. We pushed back at 6:15PM and took off eight minutes later.

Alaska Airlines offers a fairly tasty buy-on-board program for food. I had pre-ordered the Thai Ginger Beef wrap for which I got 25% off of thanks to my Alaska Airlines personal credit card. The wrap was delicious.

I also ordered a refreshing Elysian IPA that was served with packaged chips.

Rather than seatback entertainment screens, Alaska had personal device streaming available. While not as robust as American, Delta, or United, I was still able to entertain myself for a few hours.

At the rear of the main cabin were three narrow lavatories.

We landed in a rainy Seattle at 7:53PM and arrived at the gate at 8:01PM. Thanks for the ride!

I really enjoyed the main cabin experience with Alaska Airlines. They have a robust food and beverage program for economy passengers and the seats generally offer an inch more legroom than other domestic competitors.

The Details

• Flight: AS3348
• Aircraft: E175
• Class: Domestic First
• Seat: 3A
• Route: San Francisco (SFO)-San Diego (SAN)
• Distance: 510miles
• Flight Time: 1hr 9min
• Departure: 12:30PM (PST)
• Arrival: 1:38PM (PST)

The Preflight

After landing in San Francisco, I had a two-hour layover before my final flight home to visit family in San Diego. Our aircraft was actually delayed (late inbound from Santa Ana) and the gate staff arranged for a game with big dice for all passengers on the flight. I enjoyed the short game (I did not win) which had a grand prize of free economy tickets anywhere in the Alaska route network.

Boarding began at 11:54AM, six minutes prior to our scheduled departure at noon from SFO. Our E175 today, registration N194SY, was a four-year-old jet delivered to SkyWest in November 2017 and operated on behalf of Alaska Airlines.

The Flight

Alaska Airlines offers a total of 12 Domestic First-class seats onboard their E175s arranged in a 1-2 configuration across four rows. I was seated in 3A for the short flight today.

Each seat offers a pitch of 37.8″ with a width of 21″ as standard across almost all Domestic First-class E175s.

There was a small cup holder in the armrest as well as a 110V outlet.

A simple bi-fold tray table was stored within the aisle armrest.

Awaiting each first-class passenger was the standard Alaska carton of water.

Boarding was quick and we pushed back only 20 minutes late at 12:20PM. We took off from runway 19R at exactly half past noon.

Drinks were offered 10 minutes after take-off from a friendly flight attendant. I went with a Woodfords on the Rocks and a side of Diet Coke.

There was also a snack basket offered on this hour-long flight. Options included Kind Bars, Biscoff cookies, a blueberry cookie, Peatos, and popcon.

There was a single first-class lavatory at the front of the aircraft.

We began our descent at 1:20PM with incredible coastal views. As we approached from the East, we had an expansive view of the US Pacific Fleet and downtown San Diego.

We arrived just 10 minutes late in San Diego and had less than one minute taxi to gate 24. Thanks for the ride!

I appreciated the efforts that Alaska Airlines went to to keep passengers entertained on this delayed flight from SFO. The Domestic First upgrade was appreciated and I would happily fly Alaska Airlines again over their other competitors.

The Details

• Flight: AS251
• Aircraft: A320
• Class: Premium
• Seat: 6A
• Route: Chicago O’Hare (ORD)-San Francisco (SFO)
• Distance: 1,855miles
• Flight Time: 4hrs 6min
• Departure: 7:40AM (CST)
• Arrival: 9:47AM (PST)

The Preflight

After arriving on my separately ticketed flight with United from IND-ORD, I had an hour layover before my Alaska Airlines flight to San Francisco. Once I arrived in Terminal 1, I quickly made my way over to Terminal 3 where my flight was departing from. Boarding began just was I arrived at gate G4 at 6:58AM.

The A320 today, registration N854VA, was painted in the colorful “Fly with Pride” livery. She was originally delivered to Virgin America in March 2012 before being transferred to Alaska in January 2018 after the merger between the two airlines.

The Flight

Alaska Airlines A320s feature a total of 138 economy seats arranged in a 3-3 configuration. The first four rows of the economy cabin make up the Premium seats which offer 37″ of pitch and 17.7″ of width. I was seated in 6A, the first row of the Premium.

Alaska Airlines does not use bulkheads between their economy and first-class cabins which meant my seat had a very generous amount of legroom as well as under-seat storage. I had easy access to two separate literature pockets (meant for the middle seat).

The legroom was fantastic for an economy seat.

For the row of three seats, there were two USB ports and two 110V outlets to share.

In the armrest was a sturdy bi-fold tray table with a built-in tablet holder.

The boarding doors were closed at 7:23AM and we pushed back two minutes early at 7:28AM. We took off from runway 28R at 7:40AM.

The main cabin service began half an hour into the flight with pre-ordered food being delivered individually to passengers. I decided to pre-order the Breakfast Protein meal to try.

Premium class passengers are also offered complimentary alcoholic beverages so I had my customary Bloody Mary. I really enjoyed this breakfast meal onboard as all the ingredients were fresh and relatively healthy.

Halfway through the flight, the attendants came through with another full beverage service. I decided to have a Gin&Tonic. Alaska also served a delicious snack packet of braided chips.

At the rear of the cabin were two economy lavatories.

It was a beautiful day in the Bay Area and we had a birds-eye view of San Jose Airport on our approach.

We raced a Southwest B737-700 on a parallel approach for our landing on runway 1L.

We landed at 9:46AM and arrived at the gate five minutes later. There was a slight delay with the gate crew not being ready to open the doors but at 9:59AM we were let off of the plane, 15 minutes early. Thanks for the ride!

The Alaska Airlines Premium service remains my favorite extra legroom economy option compared to other US carriers such as Delta, United, and American. The industry-leading legroom, complimentary drinks, and friendly crew make the Alaska experience a top choice for me.

The Details

• Flight: AS500
• Aircraft: B737-900ER
• Class: Domestic First
• Seat: 3A
• Route: Seattle Tacoma (SEA)-Indianapolis (IND)
• Distance: 1,903 miles
• Duration: 3hrs 20min
• Departure: 10:23AM
• Arrival: 4:43PM

The Preflight

After arriving from San Diego, I had a forty-minute connection before my flight home to Indy. The aptly named flight 500, was departing from the North satellite terminal and I arrived at the gate with five minutes until boarding.

The B737-900ER for this leg, registration N285AK, was a three-year-old aircraft delivered to Alaska Airlines in March 2018.

The Flight

Alaska Airlines offers a total of 16 Domestic First-class seats on board their B737-900ERs arranged in a 2-2 configuration across four rows. I was seated in 3A on this flight.

Each seat was 21″ wide and had a generous 41″ of pitch. The recline was at five inches.

While I generally like window seats, the drawback is that the legroom is slightly reduced due to the in-seat power supply.

There was a large bi-fold tray table stowed in the armrest.

In between the two seats was a small tabletop area. There was also a small retractable cocktail tray.

Each seat also had an individual USB port and 110V outlet.

Each passenger was also given a carton of water and a sanitizing wipe.

Boarding finished at 10:04AM and we pushed back two minutes later. The taxi to runway 16L was about 18 minutes. We took off at 10:24AM with a thick cloud layover over the downtown Seattle area.

Service began slowly 30 minutes after take-off with a drink and nuts service. I went with a glass of sparkling wine.

Lunch was served 10 minutes later. I went with a tasty Moroccan chicken over couscous. It was served with a small green salad, cold bread, and chocolate chip cookie.

At the front of the aircraft was a single lavatory for first-class passengers.

An hour before landing, flight attendants came through with another dedicated beverage service. I had my second Bloody Mary of the day.

Soon we began our descent into the Indy area with dramatic fall and winter scenery.

We had a great view of downtown Indy and the Salesforce Tower on our approach to runway 5L.

We landed at 4:42PM, over forty minutes ahead of schedule thanks to generous schedule padding. The taxi to the gate took only seven minutes and soon I was on my way home.

This was another pleasant flight in Domestic First with Alaska Airlines. They remain my favorite airline when flying from the West Coast.

The Details

• Flight: AS209
• Aircraft: B737-900ER
• Class: Domestic First
• Seat: 2A
• Route: San Diego (SAN)-Seattle Tacoma (SEA)
• Distance: 1,120 miles
• Duration: 2hrs 30min
• Departure: 6:37AM
• Arrival: 9:07AM

The Preflight

After spending a holiday weekend with family in San Diego, it was time for me to fly home to Indy. I was flying with Alaska Airlines via Seattle in Domestic First class. I arrived at the airport early in the morning to find a very busy check-in area.

There was a fairly large line for TSA PreCheck but I was still through security within five minutes. Because it was so early in the morning, the Aspire Lounge, which is an AMEX partner lounge, was not open. I spent about 30 minutes walking around the terminal prior to boarding.

Our B737-900ER, registration N214AK, was one of the newer B737s in the AS fleet at just two years old. She was delivered brand new to Alaska in March 2019.

Boarding began at 5:32AM, 43 minutes prior to our schedule departure time.

The Flight

Alaska Airlines offers a total of 16 Domestic first-class seats onboard their B737-900ERs arranged in a 2-2 configuration across four rows. I was seated in 2A this morning. The Recaro CL4400 seats in Domestic First were originally introduced in 2012 and had been the standard across the Alaska fleet for almost a decade. Each seat offered five inches of recline with an articulating seat bottom and a six-way adjustable headrest.

The seat itself was 21″ wide and had a generous 41″ of pitch. There were no seat back inflight entertainment screens.

A large bi-fold tray table with cup holder was stored in the armrest.

The center console had a small tabletop space for drinks as well as a retractable cocktail tray. Underneath was the seat recline button.

Each seat also had an individual USB port and 110V outlet.

A small carton of water was also provided to First class passengers.

The doors were closed at 6:07AM and we pushed back 15 minutes later. There was a long line of aircraft awaiting take-off as San Diego Airport has a take-off curfew from 23:30 to 06:30. At 6:36AM we took off from runway 27 bound for Seattle with a beautiful sunrise.

Breakfast was served 20 minutes into the flight. Options included either a breakfast croissant or a fruit and cheese plate. I went with the breakfast croissant which was one of the best cold breakfasts I have had on an airplane. The sandwich was filled with avocado, bacon, and egg with a side of fresh fruit. I washed the tasty sandwich down with a Bloody Mary.

Afterward, I indulged in a coffee with Baileys.

There was a single basic lavatory at the front of the cabin for First class passengers.

There were a few clouds as we approached a stormy Seattle and the cabin was prepared for landing 40 minutes prior to landing due to turbulence.

On the final approach to runway 16R, we had a great overhead view of Boeing Field and all of the grounded B737 MAX-8s.

We landed 22 minutes early at 9:07AM and arrived a the gate five minutes later. Thanks for the ride!

As always, I had a fantastic Domestic First class experience with Alaska Airlines. Their food and beverage service, friendly flight crew, and punctual service makes them my preferred airline from San Diego.