A business update was the main news powering Alaska Air( ALK -1.34%) stock to a double-digit gain over the past few trading days. During the week, the carrier's shares rose by just over 15% in price, according to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

For the better part of the past century, Alaska Airlines has focused on ferrying travelers across a relatively narrow slice of the US. It’s now thinking much bigger.

Shares of Alaska Air Group Inc. ALK climbed 13.16% to $61.29 Tuesday, on what proved to be an all-around grim trading session for the stock market, with the S&P 500 Index SPX falling 0.30% to 6,034.91 and Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA falling 0.