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Hawaiian Airlines ( haw, Hui Mokulele o Hawaiʻi ) is the largest operator of commercial flights to and from the U.S. state of
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
. It is the tenth-largest commercial airline in the United States, and is based at
Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
. The airline operates its main hub at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport on the island of
Oʻahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O� ...
and a secondary hub out of Kahului Airport on the island of
Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, whic ...
. The airline also maintained a crew base at
Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport , commonly referred to as LAX (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles, California and its surrounding metropolitan area. LAX is located in the ...
. Hawaiian Airlines operates flights to Asia, American Samoa, Australia, French Polynesia, Hawaii, New Zealand, and the United States mainland. Hawaiian Airlines is owned by Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. of which Peter R. Ingram is the current president and chief executive officer. Hawaiian is the oldest American carrier that has never had a fatal accident or a
hull loss A hull loss is an aviation accident that catastrophically damages the aircraft beyond economical repair, resulting in a total loss. The term also applies to situations in which the aircraft is missing, the search for their wreckage is terminated ...
throughout its history, and frequently tops the on-time carrier list in the United States, as well as the fewest cancellations, oversales, and baggage handling issues.


History


Early years (1929–1984)

Inter-Island Airways (Hawaiian: '), the forerunner of the airline which is now known as Hawaiian Airlines, was incorporated on January 30, 1929. Inter-Island Airways, a subsidiary of Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company, began operations on October 6, 1929, with a Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker, providing short sightseeing flights over Oʻahu. Scheduled service began a month later on November 11 using Sikorsky S-38s with a flight from
Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the isla ...
to
Hilo Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement ...
, via intermediary stops on
Molokaʻi Molokai , or Molokai (), is the fifth most populated of the eight major islands that make up the Hawaiian Islands archipelago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It is 38 by 10 miles (61 by 16 km) at its greatest length and width with a us ...
and
Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, whic ...
.Hawaii Nine-0 ''
Airliner World ''Airliner World'' is an aviation magazine published by Key Publishing in Stamford, Lincolnshire, England. In the United States, the magazine is distributed from Key Publishing office in Avenel, New Jersey. The first edition of ''Airliner World' ...
'' March 2020 pages 86-97
On October 1, 1941, the name was changed to Hawaiian Airlines when the company phased out the older Sikorsky S-38 and Sikorsky S-43 flying boats. The first
Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper versi ...
s were added to the fleet in August 1941, some examples remaining in operation until final retirement in November 1968. Modern pressurized equipment was introduced from 1952 in the form of the
Convair 340 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inro ...
. Further Convair 440s were added in 1959–60, most of the Convairs being converted to turbine propeller power in 1965–67. The last were sold in 1974. Hawaiian Airlines started to offer jet service in 1966 with the acquisition of Douglas DC-9-10 aircraft, which cut travel times in half on most of its routes.


Growth outside Hawaii (1984–1994)

Hawaiian Airlines began to expand its footprint throughout the 1980s, as the result of intense competition on inter-island routes created by the entrance of Mid Pacific Air into the market. In 1985, the company began its first foray outside the inter-island market through charter services to the South Pacific and then throughout the rest of the Pacific using Douglas DC-8 aircraft. Despite the early successes of this new business, Hawaiian was forced to curtail its charter services when the Federal Government banned all DC-8 and B707 aircraft without hush kits from operating within the US. Hawaiian did, however, manage to gain a short exemption for its South Pacific services. Soon after, in early 1985, the company received the first two of its leased
Lockheed L-1011 TriStar The Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, also known as the L-1011 (pronounced "El-ten-eleven") and TriStar, is an American medium-to-long-range, wide-body trijet airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation. It was the third wide-body airliner to enter comm ...
s. One aircraft was used to launch Hawaiian's first scheduled operation out of Hawaiʻi, daily
Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the isla ...
-
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
services. This new service put Hawaiian in direct competition with the major US air carriers for the first time in its history. Throughout 1985 and 1986, Hawaiian Airlines added additional L-1011s to its fleet and used them to open up services to other West Coast gateway cities such as San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas, and Anchorage, which placed Hawaiian in further competition against the major US airlines. Meanwhile, Hawaiian Airlines also entered the new international markets of Australia and New Zealand in 1986 with one-stop services through Pago Pago International Airport. Hawaiian also aggressively grew its international charter business and pursued military transport contracts. This led to a large growth in the company's revenues and caused its inter-island service's share of revenues to shrink to just about a third of the company's total. During the 1980s, Hawaiian also embarked on the development and construction of
Kapalua Airport Kapalua Airport , also known as Kapalua–West Maui Airport, (the sign says Kapalua West Maui Airport at the entrance), is a regional private use airport in the district of Mahinahina on the West side island of Maui in Hawaii. It is located five ...
on west side of Maui. Opened in 1987, the airport was designed with a 3,000-foot runway, which constrained its ability to handle large aircraft. As a result, when the airport first opened, Hawaiian Airlines was the only inter-island carrier with aircraft capable of serving the airport. With its de Havilland Canada DHC-7 Dash 7 turboprops, Hawaiian had a distinct competitive advantage in the Maui market. Heading into the 1990s, Hawaiian Airlines faced financial difficulties, racking up millions of dollars in losses throughout the previous three years. Due to the airline's increasingly unprofitable operations, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 1993. During this time, the company reduced many of its costs: reorganizing its debt, wrestling concessions from employees, cutting overcapacity, and streamlining its fleet by disposing many of the planes it had added to its fleet just a few years earlier. As part of Hawaiian's restructuring, it sold Kapalua Airport to the State of Hawaii in 1993. Hawaiian soon after discontinued service to the airport as it retired its Dash 7 fleet. The retirement of the Dash 7 in 1994 also resulted in the airline operating a more streamlined all-jet fleet as it exited bankruptcy in September 1994.


All jet fleet (1994–2003)

To replace its retired DC-8s and L-1011s, Hawaiian Airlines leased six DC-10s from
American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...
, who continued to provide maintenance on the aircraft. An agreement with American also included participation in American's
SABRE A sabre (French: �sabʁ or saber in American English) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as t ...
reservation system and participation in American Airlines' AAdvantage frequent flyer program. The DC-10s were subsequently retired between 2002 and 2003. The company replaced these leased DC-10s with 14 leased
Boeing 767 The Boeing 767 is an American wide-body aircraft developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The aircraft was launched as the 7X7 program on July 14, 1978, the prototype first flew on September 26, 1981, and it was certified o ...
aircraft during a fleet modernization program that also replaced its DC-9s with new Boeing 717 aircraft. The Boeing aircraft featured an updated rendition of the company's "Pualani" tail art, which had appeared on its Douglas aircraft since the 1970s. A new design was updated by a local artist Mauriel Morejon. Pualani, which means “flower of the sky,” the key icon of Hawaiian's brand for more than four decades, continues to feature on the tail of the aircraft; beneath her, a silver maile lei with woven pakalana flowers wraps around the fuselage.


Second bankruptcy and reorganization (2003–2005)

In March 2003, Hawaiian Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in its history. The airline continued its normal operations, and at the time was overdue for $4.5 million worth of payments to the pilots' pension plan. Within the company, it was suggested that the plan be terminated. As of May 2005, Hawaiian Airlines had received court approval of its reorganization plan. The company emerged from bankruptcy protection on June 2, 2005, with reduced operating costs through renegotiated contracts with its union work groups; restructured aircraft leases; and investment from RC Aviation, a unit of San Diego-based Ranch Capital, which bought a majority share in parent company Hawaiian Holdings Inc in 2004.


Post-bankruptcy (2005–2012)

On October 1, 2005, Hawaiian Airlines began nonstop daily flights from Honolulu to
San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...
. This made San Jose the fifth gateway city in California to be serviced by Hawaiian; the others were
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
,
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
,
Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
, and
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
. On May 4, 2006, Hawaiian Airlines expanded service between the US mainland and Hawaii in anticipation of the induction of four additional Boeing 767-300 aircraft, primarily focused on expanding non-stop service to Kahului Airport from San Diego,
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region o ...
, and Portland. Additional flights were also added between Honolulu and the cities of
Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
, Seattle, and Los Angeles. In 2006, Hawaiian Airlines was rated as the best carrier serving Hawaii by ''
Travel + Leisure ''Travel + Leisure'' is a travel magazine based in New York City, New York. Published 12 times a year, it has 4.8 million readers, according to its corporate media kit. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC, with trademark rig ...
'',
Zagat The ''Zagat Survey'', commonly referred to as Zagat (stylized in all caps; , ) and established by Tim and Nina Zagat in 1979, is an organization which collects and correlates the ratings of restaurants by diners. For their first guide, coverin ...
and ''
Condé Nast Traveler ''Condé Nast Traveler'' is a luxury and lifestyle travel magazine published by Condé Nast. The magazine has won 25 National Magazine Awards. The Condé Nast unit of Advance Publications purchased ''Signature'', a magazine for Diners Club mem ...
''. On July 24, 2007, Hawaiian Airlines and Air New Zealand signed a $45 million contract for Air New Zealand to perform heavy maintenance on Hawaiian's Boeing 767 aircraft. This contract lasted for five years. Air New Zealand stated that this opportunity will also give a chance for them to build their expertise working on 767s. In August 2007, the
Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...
became the second sports team to begin using Hawaiian Airlines to travel to games. The
Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West div ...
, also of the NFL, have been flying Hawaiian Airlines since the 1990s. The two teams formerly flew on Hawaiian's Boeing 767s to and from all their games, but now travel on Hawaiian's Airbus A330s. Several of Hawaiian's Boeing 767 and A330 aircraft have been fitted with decals of logos of the Raiders. In March 2008, the airline launched nonstop flights to
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
, capital of Philippines, in the airline's first major international expansion since it emerged from bankruptcy protection in June 2005. In response to the closure of ATA Airlines and
Aloha Airlines Aloha Airlines was an American airline headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii, operating from a hub at Honolulu International Airport (now Daniel K. Inouye International Airport). Operations began on July 26, 1946, and ceased operations on March 31 ...
, the airline began flights to
Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay ...
on May 1, 2008. On February 16, 2010, Hawaiian Airlines sought approval from the
United States Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States and ...
to begin nonstop flights from its hub at
Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the isla ...
to Tokyo-Haneda sometime in 2010. The airline was one of five US carriers — the others being
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along ...
,
Continental Airlines Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continental started ...
,
United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.
and
American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...
— seeking approval to serve Haneda as part of the U.S.-Japan OpenSkies agreement. Approval was granted from USDOT to begin nonstop service to Haneda, Japan. The flight began service on November 18, 2010. In addition, the airline is planning to establish a codeshare agreement with
All Nippon Airways , also known as ANA (''Ē-enu-ē'') or is an airline in Japan. Its headquarters are located in Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area of Minato ward of Tokyo. It operates services to both domestic and international destinations and had m ...
. On January 12, 2011, Hawaiian Airlines began nonstop service to Seoul-Incheon, South Korea. On March 31, 2011, Hawaiian announced that they will be renovating the check-in lobby of the inter-island terminal at the Honolulu International Airport (Hawaiian's main hub). Hawaiian, the only occupant of the inter-island terminal, will be removing the traditional check-in counter, to install six circular check-in islands in the middle of the lobbies. Those check-in islands can be used for inter-island, mainland, and international flights. On July 12, 2011, Hawaiian added Osaka, Japan to its network. On November 17, 2011, Hawaiian ordered five additional Airbus A330-200 aircraft. On June 4, 2012, Hawaiian expanded to the east coast with daily flights to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. On August 30, 2012, Hawaiian filed an application with the U.S. Department of Transportation for a nonstop route between
Kona Kona or KONA may refer to: People *Kona (surname) *Dilshad Nahar Kona, Bangladeshi singer also known as Kona Television * ''Kona'' (TV series), a Kenyan telenovela that premiered in 2013 Locations * Kona, Kentucky * Kona, North Carolina * Ko ...
and Tokyo-Haneda. This would fill a void that Japan Airlines left when it ceased service to
Kona Kona or KONA may refer to: People *Kona (surname) *Dilshad Nahar Kona, Bangladeshi singer also known as Kona Television * ''Kona'' (TV series), a Kenyan telenovela that premiered in 2013 Locations * Kona, Kentucky * Kona, North Carolina * Ko ...
nearly two years earlier. However, the US Department of Transportation rejected the airline's application to begin service. On December 3, 2012, the airline unveiled plans to begin flights to
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
, Taiwan (Republic of China) beginning July 9, 2013, as part of its aggressive expansion plans.


Further expansion and new subsidiary carrier (2013–present)

On February 11, 2013, the airline announced a new venture in the turboprop interisland business, "ʻ Ohana by Hawaiian." Service is operated by Empire Airlines using ATR 42-500 turboprop airplanes. Service began on March 11, 2014, to
Molokaʻi Molokai , or Molokai (), is the fifth most populated of the eight major islands that make up the Hawaiian Islands archipelago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It is 38 by 10 miles (61 by 16 km) at its greatest length and width with a us ...
and
Lānaʻi Lanai ( haw, Lānai, , , also ,) is the sixth-largest of the Hawaiian Islands and the smallest publicly accessible inhabited island in the chain. It is colloquially known as the Pineapple Island because of its past as an island-wide pineapple pl ...
. The airline expanded more "ʻOhana by Hawaiian" routes between Kahului, Kailua-Kona and
Hilo Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement ...
during the summer of 2014. On April 10, 2013, the airline announced its first destination in China, with service to
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
expected to start on April 16, 2014, pending government approval. At the same time, the airline announced that it would end service to
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
capital of Philippines on July 31, 2013. On July 11, 2013, the airline signed a codeshare agreement with
China Airlines China Airlines (CAL; ) is the state-owned flag carrier of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and one of its two major airlines along with EVA Air. It is headquartered in Taoyuan International Airport and operates over 1,400 flights weekly (in ...
. On March 12, 2014, Hawaiian announced that it would begin daily service between Kahului and
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
on May 2, adding a second flight from June 30 to September 8 in response to passenger demand. It would also begin nonstop summer service between Los Angeles and both Līhuʻe, Kauaʻi and Kona, Hawaiʻi. On August 14, 2014, the airline announced direct service between Kahului and
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
beginning in November. On January 5, 2015, Hawaiian refiled its previously rejected application with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for the Kona-Haneda route with service, if approved, to begin in June. The request was prompted by a DOT decision in December 2014 to review the public interest in
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along ...
' Seattle-Tokyo route after Delta reduced the frequency of those flights from daily to seasonal. On March 31, DOT again denied the request, opting instead to allow Delta to continue operating the route, with
American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...
taking over if Delta's planned service continued to fail. On May 1, 2017, the airline revealed a new logo and livery for its aircraft. On March 6, 2018, the airline announced an order for 10 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners with options for an additional ten; selecting GE GEnx engines. Due to the economic effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, Hawaiian Airlines reported a net loss of over $100 million for the Q2 of 2020. Fourteen-day travel quarantines, which were reinstated for August 2020 have also contributed to Hawaiian Airlines' plans to downsize the company by 15-25% by summer 2021. On May 27, 2021, Hawaiian announced that it would discontinue the ʻOhana by Hawaiian brand and its cargo and passenger services after the pandemic and resulting quarantine significantly impacted interisland travel. The interruptions in service forced the airline to reconsider the viability of operation and determine it was no longer feasible. The carrier's ATR fleet would be moved to the mainland and be prepared for sale. On April 25, 2022, Hawaiian Airlines announced they will become the first major air carrier to offer the
SpaceX Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American spacecraft manufacturer, launcher, and a satellite communications corporation headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the stated goal o ...
Starlink Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by SpaceX, providing satellite Internet access coverage to 45 countries. It also aims for global mobile phone service after 2023. SpaceX started launching Starlink satellites in 2019. As ...
service on all Transpacific flights. The service will be offered free to passengers beginning in 2023.


Corporate affairs


Ownership and structure

The parent company of Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (
NASDAQ The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
: HA) Previously listed on the
American Stock Exchange NYSE American, formerly known as the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), and more recently as NYSE MKT, is an American stock exchange situated in New York City. AMEX was previously a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953, it was know ...
, the company moved to NASDAQ on June 2, 2008. Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. is a
holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
whose primary
asset In financial accounting, an asset is any resource owned or controlled by a business or an economic entity. It is anything (tangible or intangible) that can be used to produce positive economic value. Assets represent value of ownership that c ...
is the sole ownership of all issued and outstanding shares of
common stock Common stock is a form of corporate equity ownership, a type of security. The terms voting share and ordinary share are also used frequently outside of the United States. They are known as equity shares or ordinary shares in the UK and other Comm ...
of Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. On June 30, 2008, the company announced that it had been added to the Russell 3000 Index.


Business trends

Recent key figures for Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (which include the operations of Hawaiian Airlines and former regional subsidiary carrier ʻOhana by Hawaiian) are shown below (for years ending December 31):


Destinations

Hawaiian Airlines serves
destinations :''This article covers a Girl Scouts event: for vacation destinations see Vacation spot (disambiguation)'' Girl Scout Destinations, formerly Wider Opportunities or Wider Ops, are events for individual Girl Scouts (ages 11 – 18) hosted by GSUS ...
in several Asia-Pacific countries and territories. The airline added its eighth international destination, Incheon International Airport near
Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...
, South Korea on January 12, 2011. It also has daily and weekly direct, non-stop international flights from Honolulu to Tahiti, Australia, South Korea, Japan, and New Zealand.


Codeshare agreements

Hawaiian Airlines codeshares with the following airlines: *
Air China Air China Limited () is the flag carrier of the People's Republic of China and one of the "Big Three" mainland Chinese airlines (alongside China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines). Air China's headquarters are in Shunyi District ...
*
American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...
*
China Airlines China Airlines (CAL; ) is the state-owned flag carrier of the Republic of China (Taiwan), and one of its two major airlines along with EVA Air. It is headquartered in Taoyuan International Airport and operates over 1,400 flights weekly (in ...
*
Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along ...
* Japan Airlines *
JetBlue JetBlue Airways Corporation (stylized as jetBlue) is a major American low cost airline, and the seventh largest airline in North America by passengers carried. The airline is headquartered in the Long Island City neighborhood of the New York C ...
* Korean Air *
Philippine Airlines Philippine Airlines (PAL), a trade name of PAL Holdings, Inc. (Philippine Stock Exchange, PSEPAL (Philippine Air Lines until 1970), is the flag carrier airline of the Philippines. Headquartered at the Philippine National Bank, PNB Financial Cen ...
*
Turkish Airlines Turkish Airlines ( Turkish: ''Türk Hava Yolları'') is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey. , it operates scheduled services to 340 destinations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, making it the largest mainline carrier in the ...
*
United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.
*
Virgin Australia Virgin Australia, the trading name of Virgin Australia Airlines Pty Ltd, is an Australian-based airline. It is the largest airline by fleet size to use the Virgin brand. It commenced services on 31 August 2000 as ''Virgin Blue'', with two ...


Interline agreement

Hawaiian Airlines has an
interline agreement Interlining, also known as interline ticketing and interline booking, is a voluntary commercial agreement between individual airlines to handle passengers traveling on itineraries that require multiple flights on multiple airlines. Such agreement ...
with
South African Airways South African Airways (SAA) is the flag carrier airline of South Africa. Founded in 1934, the airline is headquartered in Airways Park at O. R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg and operated a hub-and-spoke network, serving ten dest ...
.


Fleet

, the Hawaiian Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft: The airline names its Boeing 717 aircraft after birds found in Polynesia, their Airbus A330 aircraft after Polynesian constellations historically used to navigate to the Hawaiian islands, and their Airbus A321neo fleet after plants and forests within the Hawaiian islands.


Inter-island fleet


Boeing 717

Hawaiian began acquiring Boeing 717 aircraft for operation on the neighbor Island network in February 2001. On June 4, 2008, the airline announced that it had agreed to lease an additional four 717 airplanes to meet demand due to the shutdown of Aloha Airlines' passenger operations and the closing of ATA Airlines, with deliveries between September and the end of 2008.


Airbus A321neo

Hawaiian Airlines started sending an A321neo aircraft on a route from Honolulu to Kahului, and Kahului to Honolulu in January 2020. This route ran four times a week; as of August 2020, the route is flown every day. This route is operated under HA179 (OGG – HNL) and HA180 (HNL – OGG). Various inter-island flights from Honolulu to Lihue, Kahului, Kona, and Hilo can be found on the A321 NEO post pandemic. Some are used as aircraft positioning flights while others turn around and head back to Honolulu.


Airbus A330-200

In 2022, Hawaiian Airlines began regularly scheduled inter-island service on the A330-200 between Honolulu and Kahului. Occasionally, the A330 can be found on flights between Honolulu and Kona


Medium and long-haul fleet


Airbus A321neo

In January 2013, Hawaiian signed a memorandum of understanding with
Airbus Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft throughout the world. The company has three divisions: '' ...
for an order of 16
A321neo The Airbus A320neo family is a development of the A320 family of narrow-body airliners produced by Airbus. The A320neo family (''neo'' for "new engine option") is based on the previous A319, A320 and A321 ( enhanced variant), which was then r ...
aircraft plus up to 9 options. The aircraft is operated in a 2-class, 189 seat configuration. Following the completion of labor agreements relating to the operation of the aircraft with the airline's pilot and flight attendant unions, the airline finalized the order in March 2013. In December 2016, Hawaiian announced their intention of leasing two additional A321neo aircraft, bringing their total fleet of the type to 18. The first flight took place on January 17, 2018, from Kahului to
Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the ...
.


Airbus A330-200

On November 27, 2007, Hawaiian Airlines signed a memorandum of understanding with
Airbus Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft throughout the world. The company has three divisions: '' ...
for 24 long-range jets priced at $4.4 billion. The order included six Airbus A330-200s with a further six purchase rights and six Airbus A350-800s with a further six purchase rights. Plans to fly to Paris and London were discussed. Deliveries for the A330s began in 2010 while the first A350 was to be delivered in 2017. Upon the cancellation of A350-800 development, Hawaiian opted for six A330-800s instead. On October 27, 2008, Hawaiian announced that, prior to the arrival of its new A330s, it would lease two additional Airbus A330-200 aircraft, beginning in 2011, at the same time extending the leases of two Boeing 767-300ER aircraft to 2011 (to be withdrawn from service coincident with the delivery of the A330s). Two weeks later, the airline announced the lease of an additional A330-200 for delivery in the second quarter of 2010, and negotiated for delivery of one aircraft from the earlier lease agreement to be moved up to the same quarter. In December 2010, Hawaiian ordered an additional six A330-200 aircraft, bringing the fleet total to 15. Further lease agreements were signed with Air Lease Corporation (one aircraft), and three aircraft each from Hong Kong Aviation Capital and Jackson Square Aviation, bringing the A330-200 fleet to twenty-two. In July 2015, Hawaiian announced the lease of an A330-200 from Air Lease Corporation. The purchase of another A330-200 was announced in December 2016.


Boeing 787-9

In February 2018, Hawaiian was rumored to be canceling its order for six A330-800s and replacing them with 787-9s. It was reported that Boeing priced the aircraft at less than $115 million, and possibly less than $100 million, each; the production cost of a 787-9 is between $80 million and $90 million. Boeing Capital also released Hawaiian from three
767-300ER The Boeing 767 is an American wide-body aircraft developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The aircraft was launched as the 7X7 program on July 14, 1978, the prototype first flew on September 26, 1981, and it was certified o ...
leases in advance; these aircraft were to be transferred to
United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.
. Initially, Hawaiian refuted it cancelled its A330-800 order, but did not dismiss a new deal with Boeing. However, on March 6, 2018, Hawaiian Airlines confirmed the cancellation of the A330-800 order and the signing of a Letter of Intent with Boeing to purchase ten 787-9 aircraft, with options for an additional ten planes; the deal was finalized at the Farnborough Air Show in July 2018.


Historical fleet

Throughout its history, Hawaiian Airlines has operated a diverse range of aircraft including the following:


Services


In-flight services


Cabins

In late 2014, Hawaiian Airlines began offering Extra Comfort seating, as a new service class on its Airbus A330-200 aircraft. The Economy Comfort seating offered seating space upgrades for passengers, along with improved soft-product offerings for passengers on international routes. In October 2015, Hawaiian announced that it will be upgrading its business class seats from the standard recliner seats to 180-degree lie-flat seats on their A330 fleet in a 2-2-2 configuration. The new seats would be installed starting the second quarter of 2016. In addition to the new business class seats upgrade, the airline would add 28 additional Extra Comfort seats. The Airbus A321neo cabin uses Hawaiian-inspired designs, utilizing and used a 3-3 configuration in the main cabin and a 2-2 configuration in business class.


In-flight entertainment

Prior to September 1, 2013, Hawaiian offered DigEplayer portable video players for rent. Airbus A330 aircraft are equipped with on-demand units built into every seatback. The new Airbus A321neo is equipped with personal device entertainment via app. As of July 2019, all in-flight entertainment on mainland to Hawai'i flights is available, free of charge. On April 25, 2022, Hawaiian announced an agreement with
Starlink Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by SpaceX, providing satellite Internet access coverage to 45 countries. It also aims for global mobile phone service after 2023. SpaceX started launching Starlink satellites in 2019. As ...
to provide free internet access for flights between the Hawai'i and the mainland, Asia, and Oceania on Airbus A330, A321neo, and upcoming Boeing 787-9 aircraft.


Catering

Hawaiian provides complimentary and paid beverage service on all of its flights. Meals are not provided on interisland flights because of their short length (30–45 minutes). On its U.S. mainland flights, Hawaiian is one of the only major U.S. airlines to provide complimentary meals in its main cabin (coach class); each meal is made with no
preservative A preservative is a substance or a chemical that is added to products such as food products, beverages, pharmaceutical drugs, paints, biological samples, cosmetics, wood, and many other products to prevent decomposition by microbial growth or b ...
s and with all-natural ingredients and is packaged with recyclable materials. In 2009, Hawaiian introduced premium meals in its main cabin, giving passengers the option of having the complimentary meal or paying to upgrade to a premium meal. The premium meals consisted of a variety of high-end Asian cuisine, but were later discontinued. In March 2007, Hawaiian introduced a "
tasting menu A tasting menu is a collection of several dishes in small portions, served by a restaurant as a single meal. The French name for a tasting menu is ''menu dégustation''. Some restaurants and chefs specialize in tasting menus, while in other case ...
" or "tapas menu" for its first-class passengers on its U.S. mainland and international flights. The menu consists of twenty entrees set on a rotation, with five available on any given flight. Passengers are provided information on the available entrees for their flight when they board or shortly after takeoff, and may choose up to three entrees as part of their inflight meal. In August 2012, Hawaiian announced an upgrade to its economy class in-flight U.S. mainland service. Among the upgrades were a new menu, a complimentary glass of wine on lunch or dinner flights, and a free tropical cocktail before landing on breakfast flights. This was in contrast to other airlines, which cut back on meal service. According to Hawaiian's then-CEO Mark Dunkerley:
"In today's competitive world you cannot justify providing complimentary meals on a traditional business model. It simply does not pay for itself... which explains why essentially everybody has taken all that free food off the airplane. We're being illogical by actually investing heavily in this area...It's part of who we are, and it's what makes us different from everybody else."
Starting December 1, 2017, guests in the main cabin on Hawaiian flights between Hawaiʻi and western U.S. gateway cities will be treated to complimentary meal service exclusively created for the airline's new ''Pau Hāna Café'' brand. ''The Pau Hāna Café'', branded meals made exclusively for the airline, consists of a continental breakfast box for brunch and hot sandwich and side for lunch. Pau Hāna, a Hawaiian term for “finished work,” is a time to relax and unwind after a long workday. The meal service is followed by coffee and a sweet treat for dessert. A parting Mahalo service features the carrier's popular Kōloa Breeze cocktail, featuring Kōloa Rum from the Island of Kauaʻi, and the airline's signature Pau Hāna snack mix. On December 20, 2017, a partnership was announced with Mana Up, the Hawaiian-based accelerator for local consumer packaged goods, to increase the diversity and volume of locally made products served on board.


Frequent-flyer program

Hawaiian Airlines'
frequent-flyer program A frequent-flyer program (American English) or frequent-flyer programme (British English) is a loyalty program offered by an airline. Many airlines have frequent-flyer programs designed to encourage airline customers enrolled in the program ...
is HawaiianMiles, which started in 1983. Miles accumulated in the program allow members to redeem tickets, upgrade service class or obtain free or discounted car rentals, hotel stays, merchandise, or other products and services through partners. The most active members, based on the amount and price of travel booked, are designated Pualani Gold (fly 30 Segments or fly 20,000 Flight Miles) and Pualani Platinum (fly 60 Segments or fly 40,000 Flight Miles), with privileges such as separate check-in, Premier Club Lounge access in Honolulu, Hilo, Kona, Kahului, and Līhuʻe, priority upgrade and standby processing, or complimentary upgrades. Travel award redemption from the HawaiianMiles program account for 5% of total revenue passengers. Hawaiian also has frequent-flyer partnerships with several other airlines, allowing HawaiianMiles members to earn credit for flying partner airlines and/or members of partner airline frequent flyer programs to earn credit for Hawaiian flights. Some partnerships restrict credit to only certain flights, such as inter-island flights or to code-share flights booked through Hawaiian. HawaiianMiles allows one-way redemption on Hawaiian Airlines flights only. Currently, the lowest-priced one-way economy class ticket is an inter-island coach saver flight for 7,500 miles. Prior to 2021, HawaiianMiles accounts with no activity for 18 months automatically expired. Hawaiian announced on April 12, 2021, that HawaiianMiles accounts would no longer have expiration dates, effective immediately.


Accidents and incidents

* On December 23, 2000, a Hawaiian Airlines
McDonnell Douglas DC-10 The McDonnell Douglas DC-10 is an American trijet wide-body aircraft manufactured by McDonnell Douglas. The DC-10 was intended to succeed the DC-8 for long- range flights. It first flew on August 29, 1970; it was introduced on August 5, 19 ...
operating HA481 experienced a runway overrun at Faa'a International Airport in
Papeete Papeete ( Tahitian: ''Papeete'', pronounced ) is the capital city of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of the French Republic in the Pacific Ocean. The commune of Papeete is located on the island of Tahiti, in the administrative subd ...
. An investigation determined that the incident was due to improper spoiler configuration and the flight crew's decision to land in a thunderstorm. There were no fatalities. * On May 1, 2015, a Hawaiian Airlines
Boeing 767 The Boeing 767 is an American wide-body aircraft developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The aircraft was launched as the 7X7 program on July 14, 1978, the prototype first flew on September 26, 1981, and it was certified o ...
operating flight HA24 from Kahului Airport to Oakland, CA returned to the airport because of smoke in the cabin. The passengers were evacuated via the emergency slides. There were two minor injuries. * On May 15, 2015, a Hawaiian Airlines Boeing 717 operating flight HA118 from Daniel K. Inouye International Airport to
Kona International Airport Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keāhole is the busiest airport on the Island of Hawaii. It is located in Kalaoa CDP, Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, near the town of Kailua-Kona. The airport serves leeward (western) Haw ...
started emitting smoke from one of its engines. It diverted to Kahului Airport, where it was met by fire engines that extinguished the fire. There were no fatalities and no evacuation was ordered. * On August 13, 2018, a Hawaiian Airlines
Airbus A321 The Airbus A321 is a member of the Airbus A320 family of short to medium range, narrow-body, commercial passenger twin engine jet airliners; it carries 185 to 236 passengers. It has a stretched fuselage which was the first derivative of the b ...
operating flight HA56 experienced a
tailstrike In aviation, a tailstrike or tail strike occurs when the tail or empennage of an aircraft strikes the ground or other stationary object. This can happen with a fixed-wing aircraft with tricycle undercarriage, in both takeoff where the pilot r ...
upon landing at
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
. Of the 197 passengers aboard, there were no injuries. * On August 22, 2019, an Airbus A321neo flying from Oakland to Honolulu (operated as flight HA47) made a successful landing at Honolulu after the cabin started filling with smoke. Seven people were hospitalized for smoke inhalation. There were no serious injuries among the 191 passengers and crew. Hawaiian Airlines stated that it believed that the incident was caused by a "faulty engine seal." *On December 18, 2022, an
Airbus A330-200 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body aircraft developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner in the mid-1970s. Then the company began development on the A330 twinjet in parallel with the A3 ...
(N393HA), operating flight HA35, encountered severe turbulence 30 minutes prior to landing in Honolulu from Phoenix, Arizona. 36 passengers were taken to the hospital with 11 in serious condition.


See also

* List of airlines of Hawaii * '' Hana Hou!'', Hawaiian's in-flight magazine *
Air transportation in the United States The United States has an extensive air transportation network. In 2013, there were 86 airports in the U.S. that annually handled over 1,000,000 passengers each


Bibliography

* Gradidge, J.M. ''The Convairliners story''. 1997. Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd . * Gradidge, Jennifer. ''DC-1, DC-2, DC-3 – The First Seventy Years. 2006. Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. .


References


External links

* {{Legacy carrier 1929 establishments in Hawaii Airlines established in 1929 Airlines for America members Airlines based in Hawaii American companies established in 1929 Companies based in Honolulu