Alaska Air Cargo ships ornaments from Alaska to District of Columbia for the Capitol Christmas Tree

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Nov. 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Alaska Air Cargo is shipping more than 4,000 ornaments from the state of Alaska to the District of Columbia today, in support of the 2015 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree program, in conjunction with the U.S. Forest Service-Chugach National Forest and Choose Outdoors.

The colorful hand-decorated ornaments will be used to decorate the Capitol Christmas Tree displayed on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol for the holiday season, and smaller companion trees throughout Washington, D.C.

The Chugach National Forest and Choose Outdoors carried out an extensive campaign to collect ornaments from Ketchikan to Barrow that represent Alaska's natural and cultural resources. The ornaments were created by communities, youth, tribal organizations, artists and individuals from across the 49^th state.

"Each of the pieces truly represents the spirit of Alaska and the holiday season," said Marilyn Romano, Regional Vice President – Alaska. "We are honored to deliver these hand-crafted ornaments and know Alaskans will feel proud once they are on display in our nations' capitol."

This year, the Capitol Christmas Tree is coming from the Chugach National Forest, which covers an area the size of New Hampshire in south central Alaska. The 74' Lutz Spruce was cut on Oct. 27 and is currently en route to Washington, D.C., celebrating in 15 communities along the way. The journey will culminate with the official tree lighting ceremony in December. This is the first time a tree from the state of Alaska has been selected as the Capitol Christmas Tree. Alaska Airlines has donated more than $50,000 to the Capitol Christmas Tree program this year.

"We're grateful for the time and resources Alaska Airlines is providing," said Bruce Ward, founder of Choose Outdoors. "This historic journey is only possible with the help of strong community partnerships throughout Alaska and beyond state lines."

The ornaments are scheduled to be dropped off at Alaska Air Cargo in Anchorage on Nov. 3 and are scheduled to arrive at Reagan National Airport later this week.

For more information on the Capitol Christmas Tree program and updates on the tree's journey, visit www.capitolchristmastree.com or www.fs.usda.gov/chugach.

Alaska Airlines transports more than 109 million pounds of cargo annually—including seafood, mail and freight —and operates the most extensive air cargo operation on the U.S. West Coast of any passenger airline.

Alaska Airlines, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), together with its partner regional airlines, serves more than 100 cities through an expansive network in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Costa Rica. Alaska Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Carriers in North America" in the J.D. Power North American Airline Satisfaction Study for eight consecutive years from 2008 to 2015. Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan also ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Airline Loyalty Rewards Programs" in the J.D. Power 2014 and 2015 Airline Loyalty/Rewards Program Satisfaction Report. For reservations, visit www.alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air Newsroom at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

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SOURCE Alaska Airlines