Alaska Air Group Unveils Upgraded Premium Cabins for Long-Haul Fleet

Industry Pulse News Desk · 2026-09-29

Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines will introduce lie-flat suites and new premium economy seating across their combined long-haul and transcontinental fleets.

SEATTLE — Alaska Air Group announced a major expansion of its premium seating options across Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines on Tuesday, unveiling updated lie-flat business suites and a new premium economy cabin for long-haul international and transcontinental routes.

The new premium economy offering, branded as Premium Reserve, will feature wide reclining seats with leg and calf rests, 38 inches of seat pitch, 16-inch Bluetooth-compatible entertainment screens, and upgraded inflight dining. Passenger bookings for the new cabin will open next summer, with service rolling out across Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Airbus A330, and select Boeing 737 Max 10 fleets through 2028.

For business travelers, the parent company refreshed its lie-flat suite options under distinct brand names: Alaska’s Aurora Suites and Hawaiian’s Leihōkū Suites. Both cabin products feature sliding privacy doors, upgraded materials, direct aisle access, and airport lounge privileges. Alaska plans to deploy the Aurora Suites on narrowbody 737 Max 10 aircraft operating transcontinental routes alongside its widebody fleet.

The cabin upgrades represent a central component of the carrier's "Alaska Accelerate" strategic plan, launched to expand international operations and capture higher-yielding traffic following the company's $2 billion acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines in 2024.

The strategy marks a continued effort by the Seattle-based airline group to strengthen its international hub and compete more aggressively with major domestic and global legacy carriers on key routes to Europe, Asia, and Oceania.