After 18 years of crisscrossing the United States, Canada, and Mexico the Salmon Thirty Salmon is heading for extinction.
The current aircraft, a Boeing 737-800, has been flying in the “Wild Alaska Seafood” Salmon Thirty Salmon II livery since 2012, though a 100’+ long salmon has been gracing the skies since Salmon Thirty Salmon I began flying on a Boeing 737-400, N792AS, in 2005. After Salmon Thirty Salmon I stopped flying in 2011, a new livery was introduced in 2012 and both aircraft featured some of the most intricate and easily recognizable liveries in the skies.
Fans of the aircraft have started a social media campaign and even started a Change.org petition to try and get the airlines attention though, as of now, the carrier has no plans for a third version of the jet.
The aircraft, N559AS, is expected to make its last flight in the livery in a ceremonial flight as AS65 (The Milk Run between Seattle and Anchorage) on April 17th, 2023 before it heads into the paint shop. The 129’ Alaska King Salmon will be replaced with the standard Alaska house colors though the airline has said they will have a new special livery “honoring the history and culture of our namesake state”.
If you want to see where the jet will be flying over the next month, check out the tail number on FlightRadar24.
UPDATE (4/17/23): Alaska Airlines operated the farewell flight for the Salmon Thirty Salmon today from Seattle to Anchorage, stopping in Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, and Juneau, AK.
Though this won’t be the last of the aircraft just yet, the plane is scheduled to bounce around the state of Alaska tomorrow before flying from Anchorage to Phoenix. From there it will spend the next few days traversing the west coast, so you still have some time to spot this livery before it’s gone!
