阿拉斯加航空公司（Alaska Airlines）正在对旗下所有航班的客舱进行升级改造，计划在阿拉斯加和夏威夷地区的航线中新增数百个高端座位，并建设新的机场贵宾休息室。该公司希望借助乘客对旅行奢华体验的持续需求，进一步提升利润。
Alaska Airlines is overhauling cabins across Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines to add hundreds of high-end seats and building new airport lounges, banking on customers' continued willingness to pay a premium for travel luxuries to grow its profits into the next decade.
这些改革措施是在阿拉斯加航空公司于周二在西雅图举行的投资者大会上宣布的。届时，公司高管将面临关于这些新服务内容以及该公司如何应对今年航空燃油价格飙升所带来的利润压力的问题。这些新服务也可能与公司的联名信用卡和客户忠诚度计划相关联——这些计划已经为航空公司带来了数十亿美元的收益。
The changes were announced ahead of Alaska's investor day in Seattle on Tuesday, when the carrier's executives will face questions on the new offerings and how the airline is coping with the profit-eating surge in jet fuel this year. They are also likely to tie the new products to the company's prospects to grow its co-branded credit card and loyalty program, which have generated billions for airlines.
尽管已经完成了与夏威夷航空公司的合并（合并时间为2024年9月），阿拉斯加航空公司仍会继续将这两家航空公司作为独立品牌进行运营。以下是部分具体的改革内容：近年来，美国各大航空公司都在不断改进客舱设施，以增加高端座位的数量，通常会减少经济舱的座位数量。因为头等舱的票价往往远高于经济舱，而且乘客也愿意为获得更靠前的座位位置支付额外费用。
Even with the cabin changes, Alaska, which completed its merger with Hawaiian Airlines in September 2024, will continue to operate the two airlines as separate brands. Here are some of the changes: U.S. airlines have been spending the past few years revamping their cabins to add more premium seats, often at the expense of coach seats, since first-class fares can go for many times more than an economy-class ticket, and customers keep paying to sit closer to the front.
阿拉斯加航空公司并非首家进行客舱改造的航空公司，但作为“后来者”，这一策略可能会对其有利——因为它可以借鉴竞争对手的经验，并尝试超越他们。旅行咨询公司Atmosphere Research Group的创始人亨利·哈特维尔德特（Henry Harteveldt）表示：“作为最后一个采取行动的公司，你可以了解竞争对手的优缺点，并据此制定自己的改进策略。”
Alaska is far from the first carrier to remodel its cabins, but that might work to its benefit when the fresh product hits the market. "There is an advantage to being the last mover in that you've seen what your competitors have and if you want to you can try to one-up them," said Henry Harteveldt, founder of Atmosphere Research Group, a travel consulting firm.
阿拉斯加航空公司的夏威夷航空A330型客机（用于飞往夏威夷、亚洲和大洋洲的航线）的客舱设施已经较为陈旧。阿拉斯加航空公司的机队负责人谢恩·琼斯（Shane Jones）指出，这些客机上的高端座位数量将从原来的278个减少到254个。新的客舱配置将为乘客提供更多高端选择，无论是初次前往夏威夷的旅客，还是希望提升旅行体验的常旅客，都能找到适合自己的选项。
The Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330s, used for flights to Hawaii, Asia and Oceania, have "aging interiors," said Shane Jones, Alaska's head of fleet. The new options will bring the total count down to 254 seats from 278 on those planes. Jones said the new options will give Alaska a range of premium choices, from the honeymoon splurge to repeat Hawaii visitors looking for a step-up from coach.
他告诉CNBC，该航空公司在西雅图总部花费了数月时间，在不同类型的光线下查看面料样本，以挑选出最合适的一款。
He told CNBC that the airline spent months looking at fabric samples at the company's headquarters in Seattle under different types of lighting to pick the right one.
有些色调的粉色太亮，而另一些则过于暗淡。他表示，航空公司希望通过座椅上缝制的波浪图案，唤起人们对夏威夷热带度假的色彩和氛围的联想。他还提到，航空公司评估了波浪的数量，因为波浪太多可能会让人感到头晕。
Some shades were too bright pink, while others were too drab. He said that the airline wanted to evoke the colors and mood of tropical escapes to Hawaii with a wave pattern sewn into the seat, and that the carrier evaluated how many waves were enough because too many could be dizzying.
夏威夷航空首席执行官戴安娜·伯克特·拉科（Diana Birkett Rakow）表示，超过一半的夏威夷游客来自美国西海岸，从经济角度来看，这是一个“对我们非常有价值的客户群，无论是从他们的收入、旅行预算、消费模式还是飞行习惯来看。因此，这为我们提供了一个提升体验的机会。”与此同时，阿拉斯加航空一直在扩大从西雅图出发的国际航线，包括飞往伦敦、冰岛和意大利的航班，更多目的地计划于今年秋季开通。航空公司高管表示，尽管燃油价格飙升，但国际旅行需求依然保持强劲。
Hawaiian Airlines CEO Diana Birkett Rakow said more than half of Hawaii's visitors are traveling from the West Coast of the U.S., a customer base that is "valuable to us from an economic perspective, just in terms of their income, their travel budget, their spending patterns, their flying patterns. And so this gives us an opportunity to elevate the experience." Meanwhile, Alaska has been expanding its international flying from Seattle, including to London, Iceland and Italy, with more destinations slated to begin this fall. International travel demand has held up despite surging fuel prices, airline executives have said.
阿拉斯加航空还计划在明年初为其Atmos忠诚度计划推出一款奖励借记卡，以扩展其与美国银行（Bank of America）合作提供的联名卡业务。包括西南航空和联合航空在内的多家航空公司，已经开始通过其合作伙伴摩根大通（JPMorgan Chase）提供类似的奖励卡。
Alaska is also planning to launch early next year a rewards debit card for its Atmos loyalty program, expanding the carrier's co-branded cards it offers with Bank of America. Airlines, including Southwest Airlines and United Airlines, have started offering similar rewards cards through their partner, JPMorgan Chase.
阿拉斯加航空表示，这款新的借记卡旨在吸引更年轻的群体和新抵达美国的客户，并称这“将该计划的覆盖范围扩展到了传统信贷产品之外”。此外，从周四开始，Atmos常旅客计划的会员将必须在按飞行距离、机票价格或飞行航段赚取里程之间做出选择。航空公司已基本放弃了基于距离的里程累积方式，转而优先考虑旅客在航空公司或奖励信用卡上的消费金额。
Alaska said the new debit card is aimed at younger and new arrivals in the U.S. and said it "expands the program's reach beyond traditional credit products." Also, starting on Thursday, Atmos frequent flyer program members will have to choose between earning miles by distance traveled, price of the ticket or segments flown. Airlines have largely moved away from distance-based earnings, instead prioritizing how much travelers spend on the airline or on rewards credit cards.