Horizon Air has placed an order for 30 new jets to replace some of its turboprop airplanes. It's the largest aircraft order in the airline's history.
Portland, Oregon-based Horizon, owned by Alaska Air Group, will add 30 new Embraer E175 regional jets to its fleet over the next three years, the company announced this week. The order is valued at $2.8 billion.
The jets will eventually replace 15 of Horizon's leased Bombardier Q400 turboprop planes due to be returned in 2018, shrinking its fleet of Q400s from 52 to 37. But it's not clear whether the three Q400s Horizon has in Alaska will be affected.
"We just don't have a plan yet that we're releasing publicly," said spokeswoman Bobbie Egan. "We're working on that."
Horizon will operate the jets exclusively for its sister company, Alaska Airlines.
The E175 jets can go greater distances than the turboprop Q400s and are meant for routes that still don't have enough demand for a larger jet. Both the E175 and the Q400 have the capacity to fit 76 passengers.
Earlier this year, Alaska Air Chief Financial Officer Brandon Pedersen said in a earnings call the E175 purchase will help the company keep up with other airlines.
"Our competition, frankly, is using those (jets) in many of our markets and I think we want to make sure that we are staying on par or better with the customer experience side," Pedersen said in January.
The Q400s were introduced in Alaska in 2013 and currently fly to Anchorage, Fairbanks, Kodiak and Prudhoe Bay.