Alaska Air Group Narrows 1Q Loss

HARRY R. WEBER

ATLANTA (AP) — Alaska Air Group Inc., parent of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, said Thursday it narrowed its first-quarter loss and will start charging for a first checked bag like most other airlines.

The company lost $19.2 million compared to a year-ago loss of $37.3 million.

The Seattle-based airline operator said its January-March loss was 53 cents a share compared with a loss of $1.01 a share a year ago.

Revenue came to $742.4 million, compared to $839.5 million a year ago.

Alaska Air Group's adjusted first-quarter loss was 70 cents a share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected Alaska Air Group to post a first-quarter loss of 49 cents a share on revenue of $735 million. Analysts generally exclude one-time items from their estimates.

Shares of Alaska Air Group fell $2.44, or 12.3 percent, to close at $17.38 in Thursday trading.

"While our first quarter financial results improved over last year due to a significant decline in fuel cost, we're disappointed to report a loss for the quarter. To minimize the impact of the steep decline in air travel demand, we have reduced our schedules, reallocated capacity and taken fare actions," said Bill Ayer, Alaska Air Group's chairman and chief executive officer.