If you book a cruise-tour to Alaska, odds are a portion of your trip will be onboard an Alaskan Airlines flight. Along with being the launch customer for Boeing's new "state of the art" 737-900, Alaska Airlines has a far greater presence in the lower 48 than you might imagine.

With an extensive Alaskan route system that serves almost every corner of the state, Alaska Airlines stretches its wings to every major west coast city in the US, Mexico and as far to the east as Chicago and Washington, D. C. Additional routes to the eastern US from Anchorage and Seattle are soon to be announced. Alaska Airlines has cooperative partnerships with several major domestic and foreign airlines, which offer reciprocal frequent flyer programs.

Particular emphasis has been placed on providing substantial food and wine service on most flights, even though average flight length is just three hours. Alaska Airlines is catered by LSG Sky Chefs and offers a very impressive meal service in First Class on their long haul flights. The wine cellar on a recent flight featured a variety of California wines including Talon 2000 Blanc, Parducci 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon, Bianchi 2000 Chardonnay and a Talus 1999 Pinot Noir.

For more information on Alaska Airlines, log onto their web site at www.alaskaair.com