Alaska Air Group Names Diana Birkett-Rakow as New CEO of Hawaiian Airlines
- Joe Breitfeller
- Sep 11
- 3 min read
Alaska Airlines has announced the appointment of Diana Birkett-Rakow as the new CEO of Hawaiian Airlines, succeeding Joe Sprague, who will retire this fall after a long and distinguished career in the aviation industry.
On Wednesday (September 10, 2025), Alaska Air Group announced the appointment of Diana Birkett-Rakow as the new CEO of Hawaiian Airlines. She will succeed Joe Sprague, who will retire this fall following a long and illustrious career at Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air and Hawaiian Airlines. Ms. Birkett-Rakow will be based in Honolulu, and will be responsible for the long-term performance and advancement of the Hawaiian Airlines brand and Alaska Air Group’s business in Hawai‘i. She will continue to report to Alaska Air Group’s CEO, Ben Minicucci, and remain on the company’s Executive Committee.
In Wednesday’s announcement, Alaska Air Group’s CEO, Ben Minicucci, said,
“Hawai‘i and the Hawaiian Airlines brand are critical to Alaska Air Group’s future and key to our vision of connecting the world to a remarkable travel experience rooted in safety, care and performance. Diana has proven herself over an established career as a leader who builds strong teams, delivers results and cares deeply about people and culture. She will be a tireless advocate for the Hawaiian Airlines brand and for Hawai‘i, and I’m confident she will lead with authenticity and vision.
“I’m deeply grateful to Joe for his tremendous contributions to Alaska Air Group over the past 25 years. Joe has served Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air, and most recently Hawaiian Airlines, by prioritizing culture and creating deep connections with employees and communities, while driving results. All those who know Joe, know that he is all-in for the people and purpose of Air Group – and I especially appreciate how he has brought that spirit to his time in Hawai‘i, ensuring that Hawaiian Airlines – its people and its brand – is set up as a strong and enduring part of our team and company.”
Diana Birkett-Rakow has been with Alaska for the last eight years, leading the company’s sustainability and corporate impact efforts, government affairs, communications, community and cultural relations, sales and customer engagement in Hawai‘i and Alaska, and the airline’s venture investment arm, Alaska Star Ventures. Before joining Alaska, she held senior executive roles at Group Health and Kaiser Permanente, and earlier in her career was a health policy advisor for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. She holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Harvard University and master’s degrees in public health and public administration from the University of Washington.
Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Horizon Air are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group, with McGee Air Services a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines. With hubs in Seattle, Honolulu, Portland, Anchorage, Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco, the carrier delivers exceptional care as they fly their guests to over 140 destinations across North America, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific. Alaska Airlines is a member of the oneworld Alliance with Hawaiian scheduled to join in 2026. With oneworld and our additional global partners, guests can earn and redeem miles for travel to over 1,000 worldwide destinations. Alaska Air Group is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol ‘ALK.’
Source: Alaska Airlines
