Alaska Airlines To Debut New 787-9 Livery, Fly To London & Iceland In 2026

Alaska Airlines has just announced its first transatlantic routes. The airline will be flying from its Seattle-Tacoma International Airport hub to London Heathrow Airport and Reykjavík in Iceland, starting in the Spring of 2026. These are Alaska’s fourth and fifth intercontinental routes, following announcements earlier this year that it was launching routes from Seattle to Tokyo (active), Seoul (from September), and Rome (Spring of 2026).

Adding to the news, Alaska has also given a preview of the new livery that will adorn its Boeing 787s on these intercontinental routes. Avid readers of Threads on Simple Flying have been engaging in vociferous debate about the future branding of Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, and the airline has now provided a clear answer on its new look going forward.

New Routes To London And Reykjavík

The new Seattle-London Heathrow route will operate year-round as a daily service, using Boeing 787-9s. It will undoubtedly be the crown jewel in the Alaska Airlines intercontinental network, as it is the number one long-haul destination from Seattle, with more than 400 passengers flying the route every day. London is also the largest European hub for the oneworld alliance, which Alaska joined in 2021, and the airline will benefit greatly from the connectivity provided by its partners.

Alaska will find plenty of competition on the route, as Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic already have daily flights between the two cities with Airbus A330-900s. But Alaska’s oneworld partner, British Airways, also operates twice-daily flights, and the two airlines will no doubt collaborate on schedules to ensure they both benefit from their respective feeder networks into both hubs.

Alaska also plans to initiate a seasonal route to Reykjavík in Iceland, flying daily through the peak summer season using its Boeing 737 MAX 8s. These narrowbodies have 159 seats in total, including 12 recliner seats in the first class cabin and 30 extra-legroom seats in the main cabin. Alaska will also face competition on this new route, with Icelandair currently flying it three times daily using Airbus A321s.

Ben Minicucci, CEO of Alaska Airlines, says that the two new routes are the fourth and fifth of at least 12 intercontinental destinations that the airline plans to serve from Seattle by the end of the decade:

“With these bold moves, we are accelerating our vision to connect our guests to the world. We are seizing this moment to redefine the international experience and level up. And we’re doing it with the same relentless focus on safety, care and performance that’s always defined us. I’m so proud of how our people continue to step up and deliver as we push ahead on these initiatives, with even more to come.”

A New Livery For The 787s

As Alaska expands to new markets in Asia and Europe from Seattle, it will also be introducing a new livery for its Boeing 787-9 aircraft that will be flying the routes. The Alaska name remains, but with an all-new look and feel across the vertical stabilizer and aft fuselage. The 787-9s with the new livery will debut in January, and by spring, all Dreamliners in the fleet are scheduled to showcase the new design.

The new 787-9 livery design draws inspiration from the natural wonder of the Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights. This phenomenon captivates global audiences, and it’s an experience that’s well known across Alaska. The palette for the new livery is made up of deep midnight blues and lush emerald greens to channel the aurora’s energy and spirit into the brand. Flowing aura lines, already seen in the current core livery, are used to guide the design with light, motion, and flow.

Andrew Harrison, chief commercial officer at Alaska Airlines, points out the new livery also has an eye-catching horizontal stripe along the fuselage, a nod to its classic liveries of the 1970s and 1980s, bridging the past to the future. He said:

“Our new 787 exterior embodies Alaska’s transition to a global airline with beauty, grace and a nod to our heritage. As we significantly expand to new destinations around the globe, we’re eager for more and more travelers to recognize our new livery as being Alaska Airlines and appreciate the outstanding service we’ve long been known for.”

It is worth noting that the Alaska Native on Alaska’s narrowbody aircraft, and Pualani on Hawaiian Airlines’ aircraft flying to, from, and within the Hawaiian Islands, are not going away. They will remain unchanged as essential elements of each airline’s brand legacies and history.

Fleet And Hub Realignments

Alaska Airlines currently has four Boeing 787-9s in its fleet, courtesy of its acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines, which will grow to 17 in the next few years as outstanding orders are fulfilled. The airline is promising 12 intercontinental routes by 2030, so this will require some realignment of its existing fleet and hubs.

The airline’s international expansion is centered on its Seattle gateway, so it will be creating a 787 pilot base there and positioning its existing and incoming 787s at SEA. Alaska’s first long-haul Dreamliner route from the Pacific Northwest will begin between Seattle and Seoul-Incheon on September 12, and the Seattle-Tokyo Narita route is expected to swap over from A330s to 787s from January 7, 2026. Dreamliner flights to London and Rome are scheduled to begin next spring.

The 24 Airbus A330-200s in the Hawaiian Airlines fleet will focus on international long-haul and continental US flying to and from the group’s second-largest hub in Honolulu. The airline says its plans to make a substantial investment in the onboard experience over the next few years, including all-new interiors with updated lie-flat seats and a new premium economy cabin.