MARKETS

Competition is comprised of Horizon Airlines, a subsidiary/code share partner of Alaska Airlines, based in Seattle, Washington and Sky West a code share partner/feeder airline for both Delta Airlines and United Airlines, based in St. George, Utah.

Horizon’s business plan is a mix of feeder and regional carrier. As a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines it is difficult to understand their operation from an economic point of view as their numbers are combined with Alaska’s. As a subsidiary their primary function is to collect passengers from smaller markets and direct them to the hubs served by their parent. Hence, the schedules from Friedman to Seattle/Tacoma, Alaska’s major hub within the 48 lower states. The secondary function is to serve smaller markets where Alaska’s primary fleet (727’s and MD-80’s and 90’s) cannot serve due to lower passenger counts or equipment restrictions due to facilities, most notably runway length, altitude, weather or airport services. An example of a secondary market would be the recent introduction of direct service from Boise, Idaho to San Diego, CA. Horizon utilizes DeHaviland (DASH-8 100 and 300) Turbo Prop aircraft for the Wood River Valley market.

Table 12.

Horizon Air

1996-2000

Averages

Outbound Passengers

20,320

Outbound Passenger/Revenue

$2,325,400

Fared Average Yield

$0.19

Fared Average Fare

$122.88

Load Factor

64.00%

RASM (Revenue per Available Seat Mile)

$0.17

CSAM (Cost per Available Seat Mile)

$0.19

Annual Outbound Passenger Revenue Growth

2.00%