MEMPHIS, TN -- (Marketwire) -- 10/10/08 -- Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (NASDAQ: PNCL) today released capacity and operational results for its Colgan Air, Inc. subsidiary for September 2008.

                     September 2008 Performance
                   -------------------------------
                     2008       2007      Change
                   ---------  ---------  ---------
Passengers           215,125    124,338      73.0%
ASMs (000)           100,669     51,691      94.8%
RPMs (000)            51,432     22,759     126.0%
Departures            10,244      9,675       5.9%
Block Hours           12,648     11,142      13.5%
Load Factor            51.1%      44.0%       7.1 pts
Fleet
   SAAB 340               38         42      (9.5)%
   Beech 1900              5          7     (28.6)%
   Q400                   15          -     100.0%

                       Year-To-Date Performance
                   -------------------------------
                     2008       2007      Change
                   ---------  ---------  ---------
Passengers         1,852,341  1,164,917      59.0%
ASMs (000)           772,008    472,658      63.3%
RPMs (000)           412,559    216,696      90.4%
Departures            93,074     85,423       9.0%
Block Hours          116,629    101,396      15.0%
Load Factor            53.4%      45.8%       7.6 pts

The average length of a Colgan flight was 225 statute miles compared to 175 statute miles in September 2007.

The term "block hours" refers to the elapsed time between an aircraft leaving a gate and arriving at a gate.

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 135 regional jets in the United States and Canada as Northwest Airlink and Delta Connection. Colgan Air, Inc. operates a fleet of 58 regional turboprops as Continental Connection, United Express and US Airways Express. Pinnacle Airlines Corp. operating units fly over 1,000 daily flights and transport more than 10 million passengers a year to 140 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.