Alaska Airlines pulling plastic cups, bottles from all flights immediately

In a bid to improve its impact on the environment, Alaska Airlines announced on Wednesday that it's doing away with plastic bottles and plastic cups on all flights -- a move it says will save almost 2m pounds of waste per year. Starting on Thursday, the carrier will begin a partnership with Boxed Water Is Better to provide water from cartons that are 92% plant-based in recyclable paper cups. "As a West Coast-based airline, we fly to some of the most beautiful places on earth. Protecting these habitats is critical for our collective future, and reducing plastic waste is a key step," said Diana Birkett Rakow, Alaska Airlines VP of public affairs and sustainability. Rakow called the move away from plastic the airline's "most impactful plastic-reduction initiative yet." Alaska Airlines, which switched from plastic to compostable straws three years ago, is aiming to become the most fuel-efficient US airline within four years and achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. The carrier said it created an environmental team that spent months researching alternatives to plastic, and it expects the move will eliminate 54m plastic cups and bottles each year.<br/>