SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Airlines
announced today that the company has signed an agreement to become
the official airline of the San Francisco Giants for the next seven
years, extending the partnership that Virgin America established
with the organization in 2008. To celebrate this partnership and
Alaska's commitment to the Bay
Area, the company unveiled the design for an Airbus 321 featuring
the Giants logo and team colors that will begin flying early next
year.
"Our commitment to San
Francisco and our Bay Area employees has never been stronger
and, as part of that, we're thrilled to extend the Giants
sponsorship for the next seven years," said Andrew Harrison, chief commercial officer at
Alaska Airlines. "As the official airline of the Giants, we look
forward to supporting both the organization and fans at the airport
and on the field for many years to come."
"The Giants are grateful to Alaska for recognizing the value we built
through our partnership with Virgin America in serving both our
baseball fans and airline passengers over the past ten years. We
look forward to working with the great people at Alaska to continue enhancing our customers'
experiences both at the park and on the plane through our new and
expanded partnership," said Jason
Pearl, Giants senior vice president of partnerships and
business development.
The extended partnership features several cobranded elements
which will be introduced over the next several months leading into
the 2018 season. They include:
- An Alaska Airlines customized suite located in AT&T Park's
right field with views of McCovey
Cove;
- The naming rights to the AT&T Park Club Level which will be
called the "Alaska Airlines Club Level" and be updated to combine
the look and feel of the airline with the premium level experiences
Giants fans have appreciated on this level of the ballpark;
and
- The new Giants-themed Airbus 321, operated by Virgin America,
will feature the iconic Golden Gate bridge in orange across the
fuselage with the orange and black Giants logo above the wing and a
large black "SF" on the back section of the fuselage.
The Alaska/Giants partnership
will also feature many fan-friendly components including:
- Alaska in-flight Giants
offers;
- Special vacation packages for Giants fans through the Giants
Vacations program;
- Alaska serving as the
presenting partner for the Giant Races, which are a series of foot
races that include events such as a Half Marathon, 10k, 5k and Kids
Race/Family Relay, held in Scottsdale, Sacramento, San
Jose and San Francisco and
benefit local community groups;
- Continuation of the highly popular "Two-For-One" Flight Voucher
event for the first 40,000 Giants fans attending a Giants home game
each season. The first "Two-For-One" event will be this coming
Sunday, Sept. 17; and
- Alaska will launch a seasonal,
twice daily flight from San
Francisco to Phoenix,
Arizona for Giants fans to attend Spring Training in 2018.
The flight schedule is being finalized and tickets will go on sale
later this year.
Another important element of this partnership will be the
collaboration and support of both Alaska Airlines and the Giants on
important community initiatives and programs focused on youth and
education throughout the San Francisco
Bay Area.
An image of the new San Francisco Giant - themed aircraft is
available on the Alaska Airlines Newsroom at:
www.alaskaair.com/newsroom
About Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines, together with
Virgin America and its regional partners, flies 40 million guests a
year to 118 destinations with an average of 1,200 daily flights
across the United States and to
Mexico, Canada, Costa
Rica and Cuba. With
Alaska and Alaska Global Partners,
guests can earn and redeem miles on flights to more than 900
destinations worldwide. Alaska Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer
Satisfaction Among Traditional Carriers in North America" in the
J.D. Power North America Satisfaction Study for 10 consecutive
years from 2008 to 2017. Learn more about Alaska's award-winning service and unmatched
reliability at newsroom.alaskaair.com and blog.alaskaair.com.
Alaska Airlines, Virgin America and Horizon Air are subsidiaries of
Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK).
About the San Francisco Giants
One of the oldest teams
in Major League Baseball, the 135-year old franchise moved to
San Francisco from New York in 1958. After playing a total of 42
years in Seals Stadium and Candlestick Park, the team moved to the
privately constructed AT&T Park in 2000. The organization is
widely recognized for its innovative business practices and
baseball excellence. In 2010, the franchise was named the Sports
Organization of the Year by Street & Smith's Sports Business
Journal and in 2012 was named Organization of the Year by Baseball
America.
Since opening its gates, AT&T Park has become
internationally-renowned as a premier venue in the world of both
sports and entertainment. On the diamond, more than 53 million
spectators have witnessed a number of magical moments, including
three World Series Championships (2010, 2012 & 2014), the
raising of four National League Pennants and seven playoff
appearances. On June 13, 2012,
the first-ever Perfect Game was thrown by Giants ace Matt Cain. In 2008, the Giants celebrated the
team's 50th year in San
Francisco and it was the center of the baseball universe
when it hosted the 78th Major League Baseball All-Star
Game on July 10, 2007. AT&T Park
has also played host to some of music's biggest acts, including
Beyoncé & Jay Z, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band, Green
Day and Billy Joel.
Off the field, the Giants have one of the premier community
outreach programs in professional sports. Through its community
outreach programs, the Giants and the Giants Community Fund work
with corporate and non-profit partners to raise awareness, educate
and generate interest in a variety of issues important to both
their fans and community. These issues include education/literacy,
violence prevention, health and youth recreation and
fitness. The Giants Community Fund's Junior Giants Baseball
Program received the 2015 Commissioner's Award for Philanthropic
Excellence, and the San Francisco Giants were named ESPN Sports
Humanitarian Team of the Year in July of 2016.
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SOURCE Alaska Airlines