Alaska Airlines to end four high-profile flight routes citing decreased demand

Alaska Airlines will persist in providing services to Los Angeles and San Francisco from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), where it will maintain one daily flight to each destination.

Addressing the reductions, Alaska Airlines attributes the decreased demand between San Francisco-Washington Dulles (IAD) and Los Angeles-Washington Dulles routes to factors like economic uncertainty and dwindling government-related travel. This resonates with a broader pattern observed by other U.S. airlines of reduced demand into and out of the nation's capital.

In Chicago, Alaska Airlines cited the inability of its once-daily flight to rival the more frequent schedules offered by American Airlines and United Airlines, which can reach up to 11 daily flights. "Other airlines offer a greater frequency of flights on this route compared to our once-daily flight," stated an Alaska spokesperson. The airline opted to redeploy its aircraft instead of increasing flight frequency.

The termination of service to Nassau, Bahamas, entails Alaska Airlines exiting this market. The airline began flights to Nassau from Los Angeles and Seattle in December 2023, anticipating interest in Caribbean vacation travel. However, historically low success of direct flights from the West Coast to the Caribbean led to the discontinuation. A spokesperson from Alaska Airlines noted, "For the past year and a half, we've tried a variety of strategies to make the route financially successful from both Seattle and LAX," but these efforts did not meet financial expectations.

Different airlines have also attempted similar routes without enduring success. For instance, JetBlue Airways previously initiated Los Angeles to Nassau flights in 2023 only to discontinue them subsequently.