Horizon Air cuts flights in Northwest as fuel costs soar

Horizon Airlines is cutting some flights in the Pacific Northwest — including stopping all service between Seattle and Butte, Mont., and dropping some Seattle-Portland flights — as it struggles with soaring fuel costs.

The airline also is phasing out some of its older, smaller planes in favor of the more fuel-efficient Q400 turboprop planes.

The changes in service, to take effect in late August, come as airlines nationwide battle record-high fuel prices by reducing flights and trying to fill every seat on every flight.

Horizon announced today it will cut all service between Seattle and Butte starting Aug. 25. Horizon still will fly from Seattle to Helena and Bozeman in Montana, both roughly 70 miles from Butte.

"It's with great regret that we leave Butte, where we've been part of the community since 1989," said Jeff Pinneo, Horizon's president and CEO. Horizon also will drop service between Portland and Billings, Mont.

Other service cuts starting Aug. 25 between Seattle and Pacific Northwest cities include:

• Seattle-Portland: Five flights each way will be dropped out of the current 31 daily flights each way.

• Seattle-Pasco: Seven daily flights between the two cities will be cut to six. All flights will be on the bigger and more fuel-efficient Q400s, which seat 76 passengers, as Horizon phases out its less efficient, 37-seat Q200 planes. (That means the number of available seats will stay about the same for Seattle-Pasco.)

• Seattle-Redmond/Bend, Ore.: The current four daily Q400 flights will be reduced to three.

• Seattle-Wenatchee: The current four daily Q200 flights will be changed to three Q400 flights and one Q200 flight.

• Seattle-Kelowna, B.C.: Four daily flights (three aboard Q200 planes and one Q400) are being cut to three (all Q400, meaning a gain in seats).

• Seattle-Idaho Falls: Two daily round trips begin on Oct. 12 using the Q400s. Of the two eastbound flights, one will stop in Boise and the other in Sun Valley before continuing on to Idaho Falls. One of two westbound flights will fly nonstop to Seattle and the other will stop in Boise.

• Seattle-Sun Valley: One daily Q400 flight is being combined with the new Seattle-Idaho Falls service during the off-season starting Oct. 12.

Get more information on the flight changes at www.horizonair.com The Butte change will appear in computerized reservations systems by June 1; the other schedule changes will appear by June 15. More changes as the airline shifts to Q400s are expected.

Kristin Jackson: kjackson@seattletimes.com