Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. Releases January, February Performance Data

Market Wire, March, 2009

Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (NASDAQ: PNCL) today released capacity and operational results for its Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. subsidiary for January and February 2009.

                                January Performance
                                ------------------------------
                                 2009        2008       Change
                                -------     -------     ------
Passengers                      776,025     790,287       (1.8)%
Load Factor                        66.1%       69.7%      (3.6) pts
Available Seat Miles (000)      539,638     509,910        5.8 %
Revenue Passenger Miles (000)   356,779     355,536        0.3 %
Departures                       22,810      22,845       (0.2)%
Block Hours                      38,282      38,463       (0.5)%
Fleet
      CRJ-200                       124         136       (8.8)%
      CRJ-900                        21           3      600.0 %


                                February Performance
                                ------------------------------
                                 2009        2008       Change
                                -------     -------     ------
Passengers                      720,865     755,391       (4.6)%
Load Factor                        66.6%       72.6%      (6.0) pts
Available Seat Miles (000)      490,472     466,536        5.1 %
Revenue Passenger Miles (000)   326,450     338,757       (3.6)%
Departures                       20,753      20,732        0.1 %
Block Hours                      33,666      35,596       (5.4)%
Fleet
      CRJ-200                       124         135       (8.1)%
      CRJ-900                        17           5      240.0 %


                                Year-To-Date Performance
                                ------------------------------
                                 2008        2007       Change
                                -------     -------     ------
Passengers                    1,496,890   1,545,678       (3.2)%
Load Factor                        66.3%       71.1%      (4.8) pts
Available Seat Miles (000)    1,030,109     976,446        5.5 %
Revenue Passenger Miles (000)   683,229     694,293       (1.6)%
Departures                       43,563      43,577       (0.0)%
Block Hours                      71,948      74,059       (2.9)%

Pinnacle reports its total Passengers, Revenue Passenger Miles (RPMs), and Load Factor each month, even though fluctuations do not affect revenues received under capacity purchase agreements with Northwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines, its mainline partners.

The average length of a Pinnacle flight was 450 statute miles, the same as in February 2008.

About Pinnacle Airlines Corp.

Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (NASDAQ: PNCL), an airline holding company, is the parent company of Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. and Colgan Air, Inc. Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. operates a fleet of 141 regional jets in the United States, Canada, the Bahamas, Mexico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Turks and Caicos Islands under Delta brands. Colgan Air, Inc. operates a fleet of 48 regional turboprops as Continental Connection, United Express and US Airways Express. Pinnacle Airlines Corp. operating units fly over 1,000 daily flights and transport 13 million passengers a year to 144 cities and towns in North America. Visit www.pncl.com for more information.

This press release contains various forward-looking statements based on management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable; it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Such statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available to investors at our web site or online from the Commission. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove erroneous, actual results may vary materially from results that were anticipated or projected. The Company does not intend to update these forward-looking statements before its next required filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contact: Joe Williams 901-346-6162