Horizon Air
Company Facts
Updated March 2021
Horizon Air was formed to satisfy the need created when, after the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, larger airlines abandoned routes within the Northwest. To fill this market niche, entrepreneur Milt Kuolt and a group of venture capitalists founded Horizon in Seattle in September 1981.
In the early 1980s, the airline grew quickly, acquiring Air Oregon and Utah-based Transwestern Airlines. In 1984, Horizon went public. By 1986, the company's proven track record attracted the attention of larger airlines. That year, Horizon was acquired by Seattle-based Alaska Air Group, Inc., a holding company that included Alaska Airlines.
On Jan. 1, 2011, Horizon shifted to a capacity purchase agreement (CPA) business model, which is the regional airline industry standard. Under this arrangement, Horizon operates and maintains its aircraft while Alaska is responsible for scheduling, marketing and pricing all flights. The change also included the rebranding of all Horizon aircraft to feature the Alaska brand.
Today, Horizon Air maintains an operational fleet of 32 Bombardier Q400 aircraft and 30 Embraer 175s.
Horizon serves 55 cities in Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Washington, and Alberta and British Columbia (Canada).
The regional airline has a general office in Seattle and a primary maintenance base in Portland, Oregon, with additional maintenance facilities in Boise, Idaho; Seattle; Tucson, Arizona; Redmond/Bend, Oregon and Spokane, Washington.
- Type of airline: Regional airline
- Founded: 1981 in Seattle, Washington
- Headquarters: Seattle
- Corporation type: Alaska corporation
- Ownership: Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK)
- Chairman: Brad D. Tilden
- President: Joe Sprague
- Hubs: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Portland International Airport
- Total destinations: 55
- Number of Employees: 4,100
Executive Leadership
Vice Presidents
Vice President, People, Labor and Strategy
Vice President, Station and Inflight Operations
Vice President, Maintenance and Engineering
Vice President, Flight Operations
Other Elected Officers
Corporate Secretary
Treasurer
Appointed Officers
Jeanne Gammon-Assistant Corporate Secretary