UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No.           )

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ALASKA AIR GROUP, INC.
(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)
(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)
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P.O. Box 68947
Seattle, Washington 98168

April 22, 2004

Dear Participant:

You are receiving this letter because you are a participant in an employee stock plan which is administered by Fidelity Institutional Retirement Services Company ("Fidelity") and/or Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company ("Putnam") as Trustee.

Enclosed are instructions allowing you to tell Fidelity and/or Putnam how to vote the shares Alaska Air stock allocated to your account(s) in any of the plans at the 2004 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

It is important that you provide instructions to Fidelity and Putnam on all proposals set forth in the voting instructions. If you do not indicate a choice on a proposal, Putnam will vote your shares in the same proportion, for or against, as the shares for which instructions were received, while Fidelity will not vote your shares if no instruction is given.

The Company's Board recommends that you vote your shares as follows:

FOR    the Board's nominees in Proposal 1,
FOR    Proposal 2, and
AGAINST    Proposals 3—12.

	Sincerely,
	/s/ Keith Loveless Keith Loveless General Counsel & Corporate Secretary

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