Alaska Airlines is doubling down on its fast-growing hubs in San Diego and Portland, Oregon — where last week it revealed a dozen new destinations.
But it’s not good news everywhere.
To free up planes for the airline’s latest 13-route expansion, the carrier is pulling back a bit in California’s two largest cities.
Over the weekend, the Seattle-based carrier told TPG it’s cutting a handful of routes out of both San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) — news first reported by industry-watcher Ishrion Aviation.
“These adjustments are firmly rooted in the need to be disciplined with our aircraft in 2026, as fewer new aircraft enter our fleet,” an Alaska spokesperson said in a statement. “Although these decisions are difficult, SFO and LAX remain key markets for us.”
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An Alaska Airlines plane taxis at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). AARONP BAUER GRIFFIN/GC IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES
Alaska Airlines route cuts
While Alaska did not confirm the exact routes it planned to cut, Cirium schedules updated this weekend and reviewed by TPG showed the airline planned to eliminate a total of four routes from SFO and three from LAX.
Those routes are:
- SFO to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS)
- SFO to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS)
- SFO to Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR)
- SFO to Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
- SFO to Orlando International Airport (MCO)
- LAX to Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport (LAS)
- LAX to Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO)
- LAX to San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC)
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The network cuts Alaska filed for its SFO hub included a handful of transcontinental flights to major U.S. markets from the New York City area to Boston and Orlando.
Alaska’s LAX flight cuts are focused on regional jet service, a spokesperson said.
Additionally, Cirium schedules showed the carrier will not bring back its seasonal service from Anchorage to Detroit in 2026.
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West Coast shake-up
This is all part of a larger network shake-up for Alaska on the West Coast. In recent months, the carrier has significantly grown its footprint at both San Diego International Airport (SAN) and Portland International Airport (PDX).
That included a long list of new destinations the two airports collectively landed on Alaska last week.
But with a finite number of planes, those SAN and PDX expansions have come at the expense of LAX and SFO — both far more competitive airports, and major hubs for the legacy U.S. carriers.
SFO is a major hub for United Airlines. United, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines each operate hubs out of LAX.
An Alaska Airlines aircraft taxis at San Diego International Airport (SAN). ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY
This revamping of Alaska’s West Coast network is one that the airline has seemingly been weighing for months.
Speaking to TPG this summer, Alaska’s top network planner cited opportunities to grow connecting traffic in Portland — and growing customer affinity for its loyalty program in San Diego — as top reasons that the airline had turned its attention to those cities.
In San Francisco, meanwhile, the airline described its posture as a “holding pattern” as it ramped up service at other West Coast hubs, Alaska vice president of revenue management and network planning Kirsten Amrine told TPG in a late-July interview.
“There’s only so many airplanes in the world and I just think that we have more opportunity in San Diego and Portland,” Amrine said. “But [SFO] is still a hub for us. We still have our lounge, which opened just last year … It’s definitely still a focus for us.”
Alaska Lounge at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). HARRIET BASKAS/THE POINTS GUY
To Amrine’s point, Alaska in 2024 cut the ribbon on a new 11,000-square-foot Alaska Lounge in SFO’s new Harvey Milk Terminal.
An Alaska spokesperson on Saturday called the airport a “crucial part of our long-term growth,” citing “positive signs” of a rebound in business travel and “healthy” holiday bookings, so far.
TPG’s Zach Griff and Edward Russell contributed reporting for this story.
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