Hawaiian Airlines

Early years (1929–1984)

Inter-Island Airways, 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 Oʽahu. Scheduled service began a month later on November 11 using Sikorsky S-38s with a flight from Honolulu to Hilo, via intermediary stops on Moloka'i and Maui.

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-3s were added to the fleet in August 1941, some examples remaining in operation until final retirement in November 1968.

Modern pressurised equipment was introduced from 1952 in the form of the Convair 340. Further Convair 440s were added in 1959-60, most of the Convairs being converted to turbine propellor 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.

Hawaiian grows outside of 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 of 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 aircraft. One aircraft was used to launch Hawaiian's first scheduled operation out of Hawaii, daily Honolulu-Los Angeles 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 on west side of Maui. Opened in 1987 the airport was designed with a 3,000 ft 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, who continued to provide maintenance on the aircraft. An agreement with American also included participation in American's SABRE 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 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.

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. This made San Jose the fifth gateway city in California to be serviced by Hawaiian; the others were Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento and San Francisco.

On May 4, 2006 Hawaiian Airlines expanded service between the U.S. 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 and Portland. Additional flights were also added between Honolulu and the cities of Sacramento, Seattle and Los Angeles.

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 March 2008, the airline launched nonstop flights to Manila in the Philippines, the first major international expansion since it emerged from bankruptcy protection in June 2005. In response to the closure of ATA Airlines and Aloha Airlines, the airline began flights to Oakland on May 1, 2008.

In August 2007 the Seattle Seahawks became the second sports team to begin using Hawaiian Airlines to travel to games. The Oakland Raiders, also of the NFL, have been flying Hawaiian Airlines since the 1990s. The two teams fly on Hawaiian's Boeing 767s to and from all their games. Two of Hawaiian's Boeing 767 aircraft have been fitted with decals of logos from the Seahawks and the Raiders.

In late 2009 Hawaiian airlines began to install winglets on their 767-300s to cut fuel costs.

On February 16, 2010, Hawaiian Airlines sought approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation to begin nonstop flights from its hub at Honolulu to Tokyo-Haneda sometime in 2010. The airline was one of 5 US carriers — the others being Delta, Continental, United and American — 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. On January 12, 2011, Hawaiian Airlines began nonstop service to Seoul-Incheon, South Korea. On July 12, 2011, Hawaiian added Osaka, Japan to its network.

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 June 4, 2012, Hawaiian expanded to the east coast with daily flights to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

On November 17, 2011, Hawaiian ordered five additional Airbus A330-200 aircraft.

On August 30, 2012, Hawaiian filed an application with the U.S. Department of Transportation for a nonstop route between Kona and Tokyo-Haneda. This would fill a void that Japan Airlines left when it ceased service to Kona nearly two years ago. 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, Taiwan (Republic of China) beginning July 9, 2013 as part of its aggressive expansion plans.

Further fleet expansion and new subsidiary carrier (2013–present)

On February 11, 2013, the airline announced a new venture in the turboprop interisland business, "Ohana by Hawaiian". Service is operated by Empire Airlines using ATR 42-500 turboprop airplanes. Service began on March 11, 2014 to Moloka'i and Lana'i. The airline expanded more "Ohana by Hawaiian" routes between Kahului, Kailua-Kona & Hilo during the summer of 2014.

On April 10, 2013, the airline announced its first destination in China, with service to Beijing expected to start on April 16, 2014, pending government approval. At the same time, the airline announced that it would end service to Manila in the Philippines on July 31, 2013.

On July 11, 2013, the airline signed a codeshare agreement with China Airlines.

On March 12, 2014, Hawaiian announced that it would begin daily service between Kahului and Los Angeles 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 Lihue, Kauai and Kona, Hawaii.

On August 14, 2014, the airline announced direct service between Kahului and San Francisco 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' 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 taking over if Delta's planned service continued to fail.

On January 28, 2016, the airline signed a codeshare agreement with Turkish Airlines.

Hawaiian Holdings

Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: HA) is the parent company of Hawaiian Airlines, Inc.

Previously listed on the American Stock Exchange, the company moved to NASDAQ on June 2, 2008. Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. is a holding company whose primary asset is the sole ownership of all issued and outstanding shares of common stock of Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. On June 30, 2008, the company announced that it had been added to the Russell 3000 Index.

ʻOhana by Hawaiian

ʻOhana by Hawaiian is a regional subsidiary carrier of Hawaiian Airlines. The service is operated using three ATR 42 turboprop airplanes owned by Hawaiian and operated under contract by Empire Airlines. The new service was slated to begin in summer 2013 initially flying to Moloka'i and Lana'i, however the airline was unable to begin during that period due to Federal Aviation Administration delays in certifying ʻOhana's operation. ʻOhana by Hawaiian is fully integrated into the Hawaiian Airlines network.

In February 2014, Hawaiian announced that ʻOhana would begin service on March 11. On June 12, 2014, ʻOhana by Hawaiian announced it would expand its route network to Maui offering daily flights between Kahului, Maui and Moloka'i; Kahului and Kona, Hawai'i Island; and Kahului and Hilo.

Destinations

Hawaiian Airlines serves destinations in several Asia-Pacific countries and territories. The airline added its sixth international destination, Incheon International Airport near Seoul, 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, New Zealand and China.

Codeshare agreements

Hawaiian Airlines codeshares with the following airlines:

Fleet

As of September 2016, the Hawaiian Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft:

The airline names its individual aircraft after birds found in Polynesia as well as Polynesian constellations historically used to navigate to the Hawaiian islands.

On April 30, 2008, Hawaiian's President and CEO commented during a quarterly conference call that Hawaiian Airlines was in talks to acquire additional aircraft to meet demand due to the shutdown of Aloha Airlines' passenger operations and the closing of ATA Airlines. No firm agreements had been signed, but two options were given for the inter-island fleet: leasing additional 717s from existing lessors or leasing McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft on short-term leases. If the MD-80 had been chosen, it would have been the second time Hawaiian Airlines used that aircraft in its history. Hawaiian previously flew a small number of MD-80 aircraft during the 1980s.

On June 4, 2008, the airline announced that it had agreed to lease an additional four 717s, with deliveries between September and the end of 2008.

Hawaiian Holdings revealed on July 17, 2012, that it had signed a Letter of Intent to acquire turboprop aircraft with the aim of establishing a subsidiary carrier to serve routes not currently in Hawaiian's neighbor island system. In December 2012 it was announced that Empire Airlines would operate the aircraft on behalf of Hawaiian.

In January 2013, Hawaiian signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Airbus for an order of 16 A321neo aircraft plus up to 9 options. The aircraft will be operated in a 2-class, 190 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.

Long-haul fleet renewal

On November 27, 2007, Hawaiian Airlines signed a MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Airbus 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 will be delivered in 2017. Mark Dunkerley, President and CEO of the airline, has stated that the addition of the A330 aircraft will finally make nonstop flights to the U.S. East Coast economically feasible, as the current Boeing 767s face weight penalties during parts of the year.

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 2010. In December 2010 Hawaiian ordered an additional six A330-200 aircraft.

On July 22, 2014, the airline signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for six Airbus A330-800neo aircraft along with six options, to be delivered from 2019. The MOU replaced the order of six A350-800s which were scheduled to be delivered from 2017. Dunkerley touted the A330-800neo's fuel efficiency, additional range, and commonality with Hawaiian's existing A330 fleet in a press release, saying it made the aircraft "an elegant solution to our need for growth aircraft toward the end of this decade."

Retired fleet

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

HawaiianMiles

HawaiianMiles is Hawaiian Airlines' frequent-flyer program. 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 Lihue, priority upgrade and standby processing, or complimentary upgrades.

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.

In-flight service

Hawaiian provides complimentary and paid beverage service on all of its flights. Meals are not provided on interisland flights due to their short length (30–45 minutes). On its U.S. mainland flights, Hawaiian is one of the only major U.S. airlines to still provide complimentary meals in its main cabin (coach class); each meal is made with no preservatives, all-natural ingredients and 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" 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.

On Boeing 767 aircraft, Hawaiian offers iPad mini tablet computers for rent, in addition to movies shown on overhead projection screens. 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.

In August 2012, Hawaiian announced an upgrade to its economy-class inflight U.S. mainland service. Among the upgrades were a new menu, a complimentary glass of wine on lunch/dinner flights and a free tropical cocktail before landing on breakfast flights. This was in contrast to other airlines cutting back on meal service. According to Hawaiian's 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."

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 Airlines announced that they will be upgrading their business class seats from the standard cradle seats to a 180-degree lie-flat seats on their A330 fleet in a 2-2-2 configuration. The new seats will be installed starting the second quarter of 2016. In addition to the new business class seats upgrade, the airline will add 28 additional Extra Comfort seating.