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COMMITMENTS
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2012
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
COMMITMENTS
COMMITMENTS

Future minimum fixed payments for commitments (in millions):
March 31, 2012
Aircraft Leases
 
Facility Leases
 
Aircraft Commitments
 
Capacity Purchase Agreements
 
Engine Maintenance
Remainder of 2012
$
50.5

 
$
46.6

 
$
308.5

 
$
18.8

 
$
31.4

2013
135.1

 
39.9

 
307.5

 
17.4

 
31.9

2014
125.6

 
35.7

 
170.4

 
17.7

 
26.4

2015
104.4

 
24.4

 
47.7

 
18.0

 
10.1

2016
81.9

 
15.7

 
18.4

 
18.3

 

Thereafter
130.7

 
146.0

 
36.8

 
26.5

 

Total
$
628.2

 
$
308.3

 
$
889.3

 
$
116.7

 
$
99.8



Lease Commitments

The Company had lease contracts for 60 aircraft, which have remaining noncancelable lease terms ranging up to nine years at March 31, 2012. Of these aircraft, 14 are non-operating (i.e. not in our fleet) and subleased to third-party carriers. The majority of airport and terminal facilities are also leased. Rent expense was $70.0 million and $69.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

Aircraft Commitments
 
As of March 31, 2012, the Company is committed to purchasing four Boeing 737-800 aircraft and 19 Boeing 737-900ER aircraft, with deliveries in 2012 through 2015, and has options to purchase an additional 42 Boeing 737 aircraft. The Company is also committed to purchasing two Q400 aircraft in May 2012 and selling two Q400 aircraft in the fall of 2012, and has options to purchase an additional 10 Q400 aircraft.

Subsequent to March 31, 2012, the Company exercised one option and intends to exercise two additional options for Boeing 737-900ER aircraft, with deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2013. In addition, the Company is finalizing an agreement to sell and leaseback under short-term leases three Boeing 737-700 aircraft, which will be removed from the fleet in the fourth quarter of 2013.

Capacity Purchase Agreements (CPAs)
 
At March 31, 2012, Alaska had CPAs with three carriers, including our wholly-owned subsidiary, Horizon. Horizon sells 100% of its capacity to Alaska under a CPA, which is eliminated upon consolidation. On May 14, 2011, SkyWest Airlines, Inc. (SkyWest) began flying certain routes under a CPA with Alaska. In addition, Alaska has a CPA with Peninsula Airways, Inc. (PenAir) to fly in the state of Alaska. Under these agreements, Alaska pays the third-party carriers an amount which is based on a determination of their cost of operating those flights and other factors. The costs paid by Alaska to Horizon are based on similar data and are intended to approximate market rates for those services. Future payments (excluding Horizon) are based on minimum levels of flying by the third-party carriers, which could differ materially due to variable payments based on actual levels of flying and certain costs associated with operating flights such as fuel.

Engine Maintenance
 
The Company had power-by-the-hour maintenance agreements for all Boeing 737 engines other than the Boeing 737-800 at March 31, 2012. These agreements transfer risk to third-party service providers and fix the amount the Company pays per flight hour in exchange for maintenance and repairs under a predefined maintenance program. Future payments are based on minimum flight hours. Accordingly, payments could differ materially based on actual flight hour