Alaska Air Group Board of Directors Announces Four Executive Elections

SEATTLE, Nov. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Alaska Air Group's board of directors and CEO Brad Tilden announced today the elections of four executive officers.

Keith Loveless, who serves as vice president, legal and corporate affairs, general counsel and corporate secretary, has been elected an executive vice president of Alaska Air Group, reflecting his broad strategic role in the company. Loveless was elected corporate secretary of Air Group in 1996 and general counsel in 1999. He joined Alaska Airlines in 1986 following his tenure with the Seattle law firm of Bogle & Gates.

Horizon Air President Glenn Johnson has also been elected an Air Group executive vice president. While continuing to lead Horizon, which serves 40 destinations and employs nearly 3,000 people, Johnson will oversee Air Group's Information Technology division.

Johnson joined Alaska Air Group in 1982 and has served in a wide variety of roles, including chief financial officer and executive vice president of finance; executive vice president of airport services and maintenance and engineering at Alaska Airlines; and senior vice president of customer services and vice president of finance and treasurer at Horizon.

Karen Gruen, managing director of corporate real estate for Alaska Airlines, has been elected vice president of corporate real estate. A 15-year veteran at Alaska, Gruen oversaw the carrier's construction of and move to a completely remodeled Terminal 6 at Los Angeles International Airport last spring. She is now responsible for a similar project at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Gruen previously served as managing director of corporate affairs and associate general counsel, and worked as an attorney at Short Cressman & Burgess in Seattle before joining Alaska.

Greg Mays, managing director of airframe, engine and component MRO (maintenance repair and overhaul) at Alaska Airlines, has been elected vice president of maintenance and engineering. He succeeds Fred Mohr, who plans to retire in early 2013 after serving as Alaska's vice president of maintenance and engineering for nine years. Mohr previously spent a distinguished career at United Airlines spanning nearly four decades.

Mays joined Alaska in 2011 from Delta Air Lines, where he held several positions of increasing responsibility, including manager of technical operations enterprise planning, general manager of engine maintenance operations, director of below-wing operations at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and managing director of global cargo operations. Mays began his aviation career at Boeing as a senior engineer working on NASA-related programs, including the space station.

Editor's note: High-resolution photos of the four executives are available for download in the Alaska Airlines Newsroom image gallery at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

Alaska Airlines, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), together with its partner regional airlines, serves 95 cities through an expansive network in Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. Alaska Airlines has ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Network Carriers" in the J.D. Power and Associates North America Airline Satisfaction Study^SM for five consecutive years from 2008 to 2012. For reservations, visit www.alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines Newsroom at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

SOURCE Alaska Air Group