Attracting the business traveler: airports and airlines provide special perks for frequent fliers.

• Author: Orr, Vanessa
• Position: CORPORATE TRAVEL

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While Alaska is often thought of as a tourist destination, much of the air travel in and out of the state is done by business travelers flying to the Lower 48, Canada or international destinations. To attract these customers, most airlines, and a few airports, have instituted special programs to reward corporate travelers for their business and to make their trips a little less taxing.

"Corporate travelers are the bread and butter of our business, and we have tried to design our airline around taking care of their needs," explained Rick Rasmussen, director of Customer Loyalty and Marketing Programs for Alaska Airlines. "Our goal is to provide a product that is easy to use and delivers more than they expect, or can get from someone else. While we welcome both business travelers and leisure travelers with open arms, we understand that it is the business traveler who flies us to get to work who pays our bills."

BRINGING THE OFFICE TO THE AIRPORT

While many larger airports in the Lower 48 provide conference and boardroom facilities for corporate travelers, most of Alaska's airports rely on the airlines that use them to offer these services. In Seattle, for example, the Sea-Tac Airport Conference Center provides business travelers with approximately 9,000 square feet of private, flexible meeting space that can accommodate small group meetings or conferences of up to 200 participants. At Portland International Airport's newly renovated conference center, seven rooms are available to accommodate groups ranging in size from five to 65 participants.

"In Anchorage, the airport doesn't provide these types of corporate amenities, rather, the airlines do," explained Linda Bustamante, communications coordinator, Alaska Department of Transportation. "The largest passenger carrier serving Anchorage International Airport is Alaska Airlines, and they have a boardroom that is reciprocal with other airlines, as well as MVP check-in and passenger screening. The airport does offer free Wi-Fi, and that has been well received by the traveling public."

Juneau International Airport also offers free Wi-Fi, but does not have the capacity for meeting facilities. "Despite the fact that we have approximately 400,000 enplanements a year, we are actually a very small airport," explained Airport Administrative Assistant Pare Chapin.

One solution to this space issue can be found at Fairbanks International Airport, where Alaska Aerofuel provides...