Alaska Airlines spruced up ahead of Fiumicino debut: and there's the deal with ITA to earn miles (but not on Volare)

In an aviation world in which the liveries of many companies are of a banality bordering on the embarrassing, the 'face of the Eskimo' which, albeit passed through several redesigns, has been making a fine display on the tails of Alaska Airlines planes for decades can be considered decidedly identity-driven.

However, for its long-haul debut, the Seattle-based American carrier decided to give its Boeing 787-9s a less geographically connoted and more global look. This is how the 'Aurora livery' was born., a livery in shades of green, light blue and blue intended to recall the colors of the Aurora Borealis.

It is in that dress that, next April 29, the Stars and Stripes airline's Dreamliner will make its first appearance at Fiumicino Airport, at the end of its inaugural flight that left Seattle the evening of the day before. His will be a European debut, as Rome was chosen by Alaska as its first European destination, in a long-range development plan that started in 2025 with connections between Seattle and Tokyo and Seattle and Seoul.

Having no 'own' machines, Alaska has been operating flights to Asia for months using Boeing 787-9s in Hawaiian Airlines livery, an airline it became the owner of during 2024.

But in recent days the first Dreamliner was unveiled in Everett in the 'Aurora Livery,' which will henceforth be applied to 787-9s coming into the fleet.

In a note, the company pointed out that the coloring required nearly 1,000 man-hours spread over 13 days to be applied to the Dreamliner.

For Italian passengers, the flight (which will be daily until Oct. 4 and will instead operate six times a week from the following day) is an additional alternative to reach the U.S. West (or Alaska or Hawaii) thanks to the dense network of connections operated by Alaska at its Seattle hub.

While the livery is all new on the outside, inside the Dreamliners that will connect Rome and Seattle will have the exact same (including colors) interior as the 787-9s in Hawaiian Airlines livery, with 34 suites (with doors) in Business Class (1-2-1) 

238 seats in Economy, 79 of which are identified as 'Premium Class' with more legroom.

The American carrier (which is part of the Oneworld alliance) has recently entered into a partnership with ITA Airways through which, by booking flights on its website, members of its FFP Atmos can also earn points by flying ITA Airways in connection with their flight to and from Seattle.

The agreement at the moment, does not provide that ITA frequent flyers can also earn Volare points (and in the future Miles & More) flying with Alaska Airlines.