First Copper River salmon shipment arrives in Seattle

SEATAC, Wash. — Alaska’s Copper River salmon harvest has begun, and the first fresh salmon of the season arrived at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport Tuesday morning.

It’s an annual rite of spring bringing in tens of thousands of pounds of the salmon that’s coveted for its large fat reserves the fish need for their long, difficult upstream swim. It’s that extra fat content that gives the salmon a rich, moist flavor.

Some of the traditional fanfare of the arrival resumed this year after it was curtailed in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Pilots of the Alaska Airlines Boeing “Salmon-Thirty-Salmon” brandished a hefty Copper River king salmon as they exited the plane and held it up triumphantly.

Part of the tradition includes the KIRO 7 reporter covering the story to kiss the salmon, and this year was no different. KIRO 7 reporter Ranji Sinha did indeed give the king salmon a quick peck.

In past years, the Alaska Air pilots had also kissed the first fish, but this year they kept their masks on.

“I’m not going to lie. I was kind of happy I didn’t have to kiss the fish this year, so there is a silver lining to the mask situation,” Alaska Airlines pilot Brent Carricaburu said last year.

This year, the first fish is going to be part of a special dinner served up by We Got This Seattle. The salmon was donated by OBI Seafoods, and seats were auctioned off for the dinner to raise money for meals for frontline workers.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has forecast a fairly large harvest of the salmon this year. When it heads to local restaurants, it could be a selling point to get people back to dining out after earlier COVID-19 closures.

Cox Media Group