Alaska
Frequent travelers weigh in on Alaska Airlines’ new rewards program
I got up early last week to take my own advice: flying to Juneau to visit my legislators.
But in addition to representing Alaskans in Juneau, all of Alaska’s legislators are frequent flyers.
Alaska Airlines Flight 62 was full of sleepy Alaskans on a similar mission. While I was knocking on doors regarding travel issues, there were others who had their own pitch for lawmakers: Future Farmers of America, Alaska’s State School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, the Alaska Council on Aging and a number of other groups.
It cost me 20,000 Atmos Rewards points for a round-trip ticket. Others who bought their tickets well in advance paid around $400, while last-minute travelers can pay as much as $700 round-trip. There are a couple of plans to carve 30% off last-minute tickets. Every Alaska Airlines frequent flyer gets a Constituent Fare discount off of three- or seven-day advance purchase fares to Juneau, one time only. Every Club 49 member gets a Travel Now certificate for 30% off the walk-up fare, one time only.
Over the course of the day, I had a half-dozen appointments with legislators, with a script to stay on topic for the 15-minute visit.
But Capitol insiders will confess that much of the real action is in the stairwell and the hallways, where you bump into legislators, staffers, lobbyists and media types.
Everybody I bumped into wanted to talk about Alaska Airlines. Specifically, frequent flyers were concerned about the high cost of travel between Anchorage and Juneau. Or, they were confused about Alaska’s new Atmos Rewards program. Or both.
Earlier this month, I asked some readers to give Atmos a report card grade, A through F.
Additionally, I asked for a show of hands at a recent travel-themed party. In between I called some super-frequent flyers to get their opinions.
The results were enlightening.
To review, when the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan morphed into Atmos Rewards, they really shuffled the deck.
All the miles-related jargon was gone. Now, it’s all about the points. There are status points, which determine your elite-level tier: silver, gold, platinum and titanium. Then there are bonus points that you can use to redeem for flights.
Further, the number of status points required to achieve the top tier, titanium, is increasing by 35% this year, from 100,000 to 135,000 points.
In addition to the regular Alaska Airlines credit card with the $99 companion fare, there’s a new Summit Atmos card that costs $395 per year. Alaska has loaded it up with a few bells and whistles, including lounge passes and some rollover points to jump-start next year’s quest for elite status.
There were just two respondents who gave Atmos an A, primarily because of the extra benefits of the Summit card for super-spenders. The biggest advantage for Summit cardholders is the 50% increase in the number of status points you get from your everyday spend.
Regular Alaska Airlines cardholders, now called Ascent Atmos cards, can earn one status point for every $3 spent. Additionally, cardholders still receive one bonus point for every dollar spent.
Summit cardholders get one status mile for every $2 spent.
So if you run a company and charge a lot of stuff on your credit card, it’s easier than ever to charge your way to titanium status without ever taking a flight.
Several — 27 — of the super-frequent flyers who responded to my poll gave the program a B.
Janine Amon has flown more than 2,000,000 miles on Alaska Airlines. She gives the program a B. She’s particularly grateful for the special phone number for titanium-level elites. She’s called the number primarily for securing credit from Alaska Airlines’ numerous partner airlines, including Philippine Air and Royal Air Maroc.
As a super-frequent flyer, Amon has stories of mix-ups and snafus, particularly between Alaska and Hawaiian Air, as well as partner airlines.
Another super-flyer, Bart Parker, gives the program a B+. Even though it’s only February, Parker has amassed more than 85,000 status points.
Parker’s litmus test is upgrades. “My upgrades are still coming through,” he wrote.
Once Parker is able to upgrade to the new 787 lie-flat seats, or into business class on partner airlines, including Hawaiian, he said he’s willing to bump up his grade to an A-.
But upgrades for Alaska’s new 787s to Europe and Asia, or on Hawaiian’s South Pacific flights, are hard to come by.
Alaska Airlines has high hopes that starting in April, titanium-level flyers will be able to stand by for same-day lie-flat business class seats on Alaska, Hawaiian and partner airlines.
Chris Ross is a million-miler on both Alaska Airlines and Delta.
Ross travels around the country working with companies on leadership development, employee engagement and health and safety.
Several super-flyers, including Ross, chimed in with specific operational issues on Alaska: missed connections, mechanical issues, delays and overall reliability. The Atmos game was way down the list for many of these travelers.
Ross gave the program a D.
An A is “Happy Days,” where Atmos is offering everything you expect from a loyalty program, including some “surprise and delight” moments. A B is “High Potential,” reflecting an honest effort to accommodate both Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines in the mix, plus an increasing number of partner airlines. But there’s room for improvement.
I bumped into political pundit Jeff Landfield of the Alaska Landmine in the Capitol. He pulled me aside for a lengthy discussion on Atmos and gave the program a B.
A C or “Curb Your Enthusiasm” reflects a lower score because of delays, frequent IT outages, or struggling with the website/app. Thirty respondents graded Atmos with a C.
Most respondents —38 — chose D or “Work in Progress.” These travelers are suffering through increased costs for point redemption, including high taxes and fees for European awards. There’s a glimmer of hope for improvement after full integration of Hawaiian and Alaska in April.
The F grade reflects “Grounds for dismissal.” These travelers, 16 of them, like most respondents, are “baked in” to the Atmos program with status, points and credit cards. But their view is it will take a shoulder-to-the-wheel effort to bring the program back on course.
Just over 50 respondents is not a huge sample. The respondents all live in Alaska and they are frequent flyers. To me, it reflects the mood of the travelers in the Capitol last week.
Thankfully, the planes in and out of Juneau were operating on time in the midst of a “wintry mix” of snow and rain with a light breeze. Several of my fellow travelers on Alaska 62 in the morning were turning around to fly home on Flight 67 in the evening. That makes for a long day, but underscores the value of face-to-face meetings for constituents in Juneau.
WHEREAS, on June 3, 1942, six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, World War II arrived in Alaska when Dutch Harbor on Amaknak Island was bombed by Japanese – the first aerial attack by an enemy on the continental United States; and
WHEREAS, the Japanese pilots expected little resistance; but because of an intercepted message three weeks earlier, the installation was on high alert, and Navy and Marine personnel were prepared with anti-aircraft defenses; and
WHEREAS, encountering unexpected resistance at Dutch Harbor, installation, Japanese forces shifted their focus to the Margaret Bay Naval Barracks, where the attack claimed the lives of 25 servicemen; and
WHEREAS, following the initial attack on Dutch Harbor, Japanese forces launched additional assaults on Dutch Harbor, Adak, Kiska, and Attu, resulting in the Aleut people being evacuated and held in internment camps in Southeast Alaska for three years, through which many did not survive; and
WHEREAS, the brave soldiers of the United States Armed Forces and allied Canadian Forces fought valiantly for more than a year to reclaim the remaining Aleutian Islands. The battle of Attu stands as one of the most costly American assaults in the Pacific, with hundreds of servicemen making the ultimate sacrifice to liberate Alaska; and
WHEREAS, on the 84th anniversary of the bombing of Dutch Harbor, we remember and honor all who were affected by the attack, paying tribute both to the military personnel who served and died to defend our Nation and to the Aleut people who died while imprisoned.
NOW THEREFORE, I, Mike Dunleavy, GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF ALASKA, do hereby proclaim June 3, 2026, as:
Dutch Harbor Remembrance Day
in Alaska and encourage all Alaskans to join with the people of Dutch Harbor, Unalaska, and the Aleutian Islands to honor all who were lost in Alaska during World War II, and I order the Alaska State Flag to be flown at half-staff in remembrance of those who perished.
Dated: June 3, 2026
A plane belonging to the Alaska National Guard appears to have been damaged during operations connected to Operation Epic Fury as part of American military efforts against Iran, according to online reports. Defense officials have so far declined to confirm whether Alaska National Guard personnel or equipment are taking part in the campaign.
Last week, defense industry news outlet The War Zone published photos of a KC-135 Stratotanker transiting through a British airbase. In the pictures, made by photographer Andrew McKelvey, the rear bottom of the fuselage and wing stabilizers are “peppered with temporary shrapnel damage repairs‚“ according to The War Zone’s article. The plane also appears to be missing its refueling boom, the proboscis extending from under the tail to pump off fuel to other aircraft.
In the photographs, the Stratotanker’s tail number is visible, identifying the refueling plane as belonging to the Alaska Air National Guard’s 168th Wing, based at Eielson Air Force Base outside of Fairbanks. The wing’s mission includes aerial refueling. That’s the tactic of large planes unloading vast quantities of fuel to aircraft, ranging from fighter jets to rescue helicopters, in midair.
Pictures from a different photographer published last week by another blog, The Aviationist, show the same plane. The tail includes the letters “AK” painted above a white polar bear.
In addition to the photographs, the reporting from The War Zone is based on publicly available flight data and social media posts scraped from a variety of sources.
According to information from Flight Radar 24, the Stratotanker left Eielson on March 5, just days after the U.S. and Israeli militaries began bombing Iranian targets on Feb. 28. Through March, according to public flight records, the plane was based at Ben Gurion Airport southeast of Tel Aviv, where, according to The War Zone, dozens of American refueling aircraft were staged as part of Operation Epic Fury.
There are no public flight records connected to the Stratotanker through April and most of May, until it appeared to fly through England on the way to the United States at the end of last month.
It is not clear how many Alaska Air National Guard planes, personnel or units are currently deployed in connection to the war effort against Iran.
A spokesperson for the Alaska National Guard referred all questions about Operation Epic Fury to the U.S. Central Command.
A spokesperson for CENTCOM, headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida, declined to answer questions on the record or provide any specific information about Alaska National Guard units deployed as part of ongoing military operations, citing the need to protect service members and operational security.
The Alaska National Guard has posted no informational releases or pictures connected to an overseas deployment during the last few months.
Much of Operation Epic Fury has been waged by military aircraft, and aerial refueling is critical to keeping planes supplied during long flights. A May 12 report from the Congressional Research Service composed of public damage reports to U.S. military aircraft noted that among the 42 records of damage or losses were seven KC-135 Stratotankers, though the findings were published before photos emerged of the Alaska-based plane. The report noted that the Defense Department “has not published a comprehensive assessment of combat losses” from Operation Epic Fury.
The tail number is associated with a Stratotanker manufactured in 1964, the year before Boeing ceased making them. All of the nearly 400 KC-135s currently in operation within the American military date back to that era of the Cold War.
The aircraft has the word “Tetlin” painted on the top of its tail. The name is an homage to the Interior Alaska village, one of several selected to honor longstanding bonds between military aviators and Alaska Native communities, according to photographs of a dedication ceremony posted by the Alaska National Guard last summer.
The 168th Wing currently has 12 Stratotankers attached to the unit. That number bumped up in April after a long campaign by Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan to allocate more tankers to the state’s portfolio given its vast geography and high number of advanced fighter jets.
- Alaska Airlines is opening its newest Lounge at Portland International Airport, featuring thoughtfully designed spaces with twice the square footage and seating of the current space
- The new Lounge reflects the airline’s appreciation for its loyal guests and comes as Alaska continues to expand its service in Portland, offering more flights and more options for guests
- The investment to modernize the Portland Lounge is part of Alaska’s growing portfolio to elevate its global guest experience and expand its Lounge footprint, including new spaces in Seattle, San Diego and Honolulu
PORTLAND, Ore., June 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Alaska Airlines is set to welcome guests to its newest Lounge at Portland International Airport (PDX) when it officially opens on June 4, underscoring its continued investment in premium travel and one of the carrier’s key West Coast hubs.
After more than two years of construction, the approximately 14,000-square-foot Lounge will welcome guests with a warm, thoughtfully designed Pacific Northwest aesthetic, featuring an inviting fireplace and a striking wooden Mt. Hood mural by artist Ben Butler. At twice the size of the current Portland Lounge, it offers more than 230 seats, including Alaska’s Signature Loungers, along with high, open ceilings that bring in natural light and views of PDX’s new terminal. Guests can relax, enjoy fresh, regionally inspired food, sip barista-crafted beverages or cocktails from West Coast partners, or take advantage of ample power plugs and privacy booths for calls and meetings.
“Portland guests have chosen Alaska for years and played an important role in our growth in the Pacific Northwest,” said Shane Jones, senior vice president of fleet, products and guest experience. “This new Lounge is our way of thanking them and a reflection of our growing portfolio of premium guest experiences. We look forward to opening our doors this week and welcoming guests with the signature hospitality and thoughtful touches Alaska is known for.”
Alaska is the largest carrier serving Portland, operating more flights than any other airline, including more than 100 daily departures. Portland is a critical hub in Alaska and Hawaiian’s network with expanding service to over 60 destinations across North America and beyond. This summer, Alaska will launch year-round service to Everett/Paine Field and Pasco–Tri-Cities, along with seasonal service to Jackson Hole. Last month, new service began to Baltimore, Bellingham, Idaho Falls, Philadelphia and St. Louis. By this fall, Alaska will offer 50% more seats in Portland than just two years ago, reflecting strong demand for travel and the airline’s continued investment in the market.
“Our strong partnership with Alaska has helped to elevate the new PDX as a world-class destination that showcases the Pacific Northwest and makes everyone feel at home,” said Chris Czarnecki, PDX business and properties director. “We’re thrilled their new PDX Lounge is here for the long-haul, offering travelers a stunning spot to relax, recharge, and experience a taste of our region.”
The nearly $18 million investment in the Portland Lounge is part of Alaska’s growing Lounge footprint and broader commitment to enhancing the guest experience as it expands globally. Building on this investment, Alaska just announced its plans to open a landmark, more than 41,000-square-foot Lounge in 2027. The Lounge, which will be located in Seattle – home to the airline’s main hub – will be the largest in its network and among the largest airline lounges in the country. The airline is also designing its first Lounge in San Diego along with a new, expanded Lounge in Honolulu, both slated for early 2028.
Alaska Airlines Lounge members can access eight premium Lounges across the Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines network, including its largest Lounge in Seattle and additional locations at its hubs in Anchorage, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Alaska Lounge+ membership unlocks access to all Alaska Lounges, plus nearly 90 partner Lounges worldwide, including select oneworld and partner Lounges. To learn more or sign up to become an Alaska Lounge member, click here.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is Alaska Airlines opening at Portland International Airport?
A: Alaska Airlines is opening a newly redesigned Lounge at Portland International Airport (PDX) on June 4, 2026, offering a larger, more modern space with premium amenities, regional food and beverage options, and enhanced comfort for guests.
How big is the new Alaska Lounge in Portland?
A: The new Lounge is approximately 14,000 square feet—about twice the size of the previous Portland Lounge—and features more than 230 seats.
What amenities are available in the new Alaska Lounge at PDX?
A: Guests can enjoy:
- Barista-crafted coffee and specialty beverages
- West Coast-inspired cocktails
- Fresh, locally inspired food
- Signature Lounge seating and private booths
- Ample power outlets and workspaces
- Relaxation areas with premium finishes
Who can access Alaska Airlines Lounges?
A: Access is available to:
- Alaska Lounge members
- Alaska Lounge+ members
- Eligible First Class guests
- Eligible oneworld and partner airline passengers
What is the difference between Alaska Lounge and Lounge+ membership?
A: Alaska Lounge+ membership includes access to all Alaska Lounges plus nearly 90 partner Lounges worldwide, while standard Alaska Lounge membership provides access to all eight Alaska-operated Lounges.
Why is Portland important to Alaska Airlines?
A: Portland is one of Alaska Airlines’ key West Coast hubs, with more than 100 daily departures and nonstop service to over 60 destinations across North America. By this fall, Alaska will offer 50% more seats in Portland than just two years ago, reflecting strong demand for travel and the airline’s continued investment in the market.
How is Alaska Airlines expanding its Lounge network?
A: Alaska Airlines is investing in multiple new and expanded Lounges, including:
- A 41,000+ square feet landmark Lounge in Seattle opening in 2027
- A new Lounge in San Diego
- An expanded Lounge in Honolulu
How much did Alaska Airlines invest in the new Portland Lounge?
A: Alaska Airlines invested nearly $18 million in the new Portland Lounge as part of its broader investment in premium travel as the airline continues to grow globally.
About Alaska, Hawaiian and Horizon
Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Horizon Air are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group, and McGee Air Services is a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines. We are a global airline with hubs in Seattle, Honolulu, Portland, Anchorage, Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco. We deliver remarkable care as we fly our guests to more than 140 destinations throughout North America, Latin America, Asia, the Pacific and Europe. Guests can book travel at alaskaair.com and hawaiianairlines.com. Alaska and Hawaiian are members of the oneworld alliance. Members of our Atmos Rewards loyalty program can earn and redeem points with oneworld airlines and our additional global partners that serve over 1,000 worldwide destinations. Learn more about what’s happening at Alaska and Hawaiian at news.alaskaair.com. Alaska Air Group is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) as “ALK.”
SOURCE Alaska Airlines
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