As Alaska Airlines presses ahead with international expansion, they have announced two new transatlantic routes. Starting in Spring 2026, Alaska will connect Seattle (SEA) to both London Heathrow (LHR) and Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF).
As part of this announcement, they also previewed their new Boeing 787 Dreamliner livery which will be eventually be painted on all 17 787s. If you haven’t heard by now, Alaska has quickly entered the long-haul market thanks to its acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines. With that came immediate access to 12 787-9s, and five options.
In July 2025, those five options were converted to firm orders, and will be delivered directly to Alaska Airlines. Rather than painting them in the traditional Alaska livery, Alaska has opted for a more global theme, taking inspiration from the Aurora Borealis a.k.a the Northern Lights.
Using a similar color palette of blues and greens, the 787 will feature swooped lines running from the mid-section of the aircraft, going all the way up to the tail. Those lines are then accented with black to give the effect of looking at the Northern Lights.
For now, the interior will be an updated version of what we’ve seen featured on Hawaiian’s Boeing 787s. Even though the Hawaiian 787 product is pretty good, it’s surprising that the carrier has not announced plans to retrofit the aircraft with a proper Premium Economy cabin. Hopefully this is something they consider given that most of their competitors already feature similar.
In the statement, Alaska Airlines Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Harrison, 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.”
The first 787 to wear the new livery will be delivered in January 2026, and the airline hopes to have their entire fleet painted by spring of the same year.
Airbus A330 love? And other fleet news
I can only imagine how hurt Hawaiian nationals must feel knowing that their brand new 787s are already being shipped off for use elsewhere. Alaska will turn Seattle into both a 787 hub and pilot base, and will keep their (Hawaiian’s) Airbus A330-200s based out of Honolulu (HNL). The A330s will continue operating Honolulu-based long-haul and U.S. mainland flights.
At the moment, Hawaiian’s A330s feature dated cabins with very old IFE systems, but Alaska has plans to retrofit the interiors to include lie-flat business class seats, a premium economy cabin and upgraded main cabin seats.
As for their other aircraft, their entire narrowbody fleet will remain untouched, leaving Hawaiian’s Pualani livery, and Alaska’s “Chester” Eskimo livery as is.
It’s definitely exciting times for the Alaska Airlines Group, but with its evolving expansion and identity shift, maybe the group should consider a new unified airline name? Let’s hear your thoughts below.
