Safety
In this section
Safety is the foundation of everything we do as a business and the responsibility of every team member. Our shared value is to “Own Safety,” meaning each employee at every level of our organization is committed, accountable and empowered to maintain the highest possible level of safety for every employee, guest and flight, every day.
Safety Management System
SASB: TR-AL-540a.1
Our Safety Management System (SMS), developed in partnership with the Federal Aviation Administration beginning in 2011, enables us to identify potential issues proactively and implement effective solutions. The SMS creates shared accountability for workplace safety while ensuring safety considerations are integrated into key business decisions.
In 2025, we reached a historic milestone by creating a unified Safety Policy and SMS program for Alaska, Hawaiian and Horizon. As the first integration of two major airlines' SMS systems, it was a complex undertaking that demanded strategic planning and careful execution. Our approach drew upon the strongest aspects of each airline's existing program, resulting in a more robust foundation for safety management across our combined organization.
Safety Policy and SMS Manual
Our Safety Policy establishes the fundamental principles our senior leadership commits to upholding across Alaska, Hawaiian and Horizon, with safety remaining non-negotiable at every level. Key elements include:
- Recognizing our fundamental obligation is to transport our guests safely to their destinations.
- Continuously improving and advancing our SMS, providing the necessary financial, personnel and other resources needed to manage safety risk and build upon our robust safety culture.
- Setting and regularly reviewing our safety goals and objectives and communicating these emphatically to all employees.
- Ensuring all employees understand the requirement to report any safety hazard, incident or concern.
- Ensuring employees know they will never be disciplined for reporting a safety hazard or event, with the exception of unacceptable behaviors, illegal activities or intentional disregard for regulations, policies or procedures.
- Promoting the principles of "Ready, SAFE, Go" and ensuring that employees know they are empowered to pause operations any time something appears to be unsafe.
- Responding to any emergency in a measured, coordinated and timely manner in accordance with our emergency response plan.
Safety Assurance
Safety Assurance is our approach to monitoring operations to achieve effective Safety Risk Management. It provides critical input and monitoring for our SMS, implementing effective risk management by identifying emerging risks and trends and implementing mitigation plans. Our safety reporting programs encompass both employee and guest safety.
We empower employees to act through multiple Safety Assurance tools, including Report It!, Intelex and our safety hotline. Through these channels, employees can file reports on irregularities, safety hazards, compliance issues and injuries. The safety hotline allows anonymous reporting, with calls transcribed and sent directly to the safety division. These tools help us determine if risks are being adequately addressed and identify new concerns. We review every report generated by an employee and proactively source safety incidents, trends and employee safety reports from every operating division.
Safety Risk Assessment and Vendor Oversight
When Safety Assurance identifies a risk, we actively manage the outcome by conducting Safety Risk Assessments (SRAs). We perform an SRA on any changes in policy, procedure, product or operating environment. Depending on the severity and frequency of the identified risk, varying levels of management assume responsibility for ensuring corrective actions are completed successfully.
In 2025, following the achievement of our single operating certificate, we rolled out a new SMS Matrix that combines the best elements of the former SMS matrices while aligning with industry standards. This updated matrix clarifies accountability and sharpens our focus on safety risks.
Key improvements include:
- Replacing business-risk categories with safety-risk areas (like Operational Systems).
- Updating language and thresholds to more realistically reflect and tie to NTSB 830 standards.
- Matching industry expectations and normalizing the risk landscape by introducing rate-based probabilities.
We also expanded our safety risk assessment (SRA) process with greater accountability and instruction, providing guidance on risk levels, risk control types and their associated effectiveness and actions specific to reactive or proactive SRAs. Additionally, our Business Partner Oversight Program upholds the safety of our partners. This program is implemented by our audit team and provides oversight of business partners' safety, compliance and operations.
Employee Health & Safety
The physical and mental health of our employees is fundamental to maintaining safe operations across Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Horizon Air. Through proactive risk mitigation, continuous training and a culture that encourages reporting and transparency, we work to create a safe environment where every employee can perform their best work.
Safety Empowerment
Safety is a shared responsibility that begins with every person across our organization. We believe that the people closest to the work are best positioned to identify risk, which is why every employee is empowered and entrusted with the authority to pause operations whenever something feels unsafe or there is any indication of potential danger. This commitment means that no task, timeline or business objective ever takes precedence over the safety of our guests and employees.
‘Ready, SAFE, Go’ Framework
'Ready, SAFE, Go' is a framework that establishes a daily mindset, a shared language and a practical approach guiding how employees work together safely. By encouraging employees to ask themselves "Are you ready? Is everything safe?" before beginning any task, we confirm teams are comfortable, prepared and able to execute safely before operations proceed. The framework was relaunched company-wide in 2025 to reinforce our commitment to safety, elevate safety practice and incorporate Hawaiian Airlines and McGee Air Services into the program.
Ready
I am…rested, focused, well-prepared and fully confident in the process. I’m ready to take action with my team.
SAFE
We have…checked for hazards, established communications and ensured we can follow the process safely.
Go
We are…cleared to go by following the process unless conditions become unsafe, communication breaks down or resources become unavailable.
The updated framework includes workgroup-specific prompts designed to empower employees to actively participate in maintaining a safe environment. We also customized the framework for specific workgroups so that the information and actions were relevant to all employees' day-to-day operations and work. Safety reports generated through this framework promote change and help prevent incidents.
Promoting Employee Health & Safety
We aim to identify and mitigate risks before they result in incidents. For example, most of our vehicles have an interior camera system that promotes safe driving by monitoring speed limits, ensuring seatbelt use and reducing driver distraction. This technology helps us identify potential safety concerns before they lead to accidents.
We also provide employees with comprehensive resources focused on both physical and mental well-being, recognizing that a healthy workforce is essential to safe operations. Through required pre-employment training, ongoing education, clear communication of safety protocols and accessible support systems, we empower employees to take ownership of their health and safety.
When incidents do occur, our Employee Safety and Health Program and its manual are designed to help the airline operate safely, legally, efficiently and in compliance with applicable occupational safety and health regulations. The manual provides the policies, procedures and program requirements to manage risks effectively and capture learnings to prevent future occurrences. It is periodically revised to incorporate updated procedures, regulatory changes and improvements to existing safety systems.