Hawaiian Airlines must know something about the economy that we don’t. First, they were hiring all kinds of new people to share a slice of Aloha with the rest of us, then they were buying some new shiny planes, and now they are announcing new routes. With their new Airbus A330-200s being delivered next April, they are already hot and bothered about where they will get to fly them. The secret’s out and they want to bring Angelenos to Hawaii.

The first of the airline’s new planes will be used for seasonal summer service from Los Angeles to Honolulu, and it will run through September of 2010. The new planes hold about 30 more tourists than the Boeing 767-300s that are currently used, so you might want to get to the beach or hotel pool a little earlier to place dibs on the best spot in the sun. ]]> kjb 2009-09-22T09:13:57-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/4/131340/3502

We're running out of sarcastic ways to blog about new airline fees. The latest comes from low-cost carrier Hawaiian Airlines, which announced yesterday that they're adding a $10 fee for the first checked bag on interisland flights. It is what it is. And look how charmingly the announcement was made:

Mark Dunkerley, president and chief executive officer of Hawaiian, said the airline makes $20 million to $30 million a year from ancillary revenue — mostly from checked bags — and that baggage fees are here to stay as long as airlines need that revenue.

If we had to work for an airline, we’d probably select Hawaiian Airlines as our number one pick. After all, the likelihood of scoring a freebie flight to somewhere good and tropical is pretty high with these guys. Well, if you’re like us, now is your chance to join the team as they are looking to add some new worker bees. They’ve already added 100, and are looking to add about 170 more employees.

They need all the new employees to work the bells and whistles on the new Airbus A330-200 jets that they’ve already ordered. The 100 workers that just joined the crew are primarily mechanics, ramp agents, and service representatives in preparation for all this new growth. Their first fancy new jet is set to arrive in April 2010, so get your resume ready. ]]> kjb 2009-08-26T12:09:41-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/6/7563/57501

Last week, Hawaiian Airlines announced that they’d be acquiring some new Airbus A330-200 jets for delivery in 2011 to speed up their transition to an Airbus fleet in advance of the A350s that will be delivered in 2017. We can only hope that they’ll still go through with upgrading their existing Boeing planes with those sexy winglets.

Just after announcing that they were opening the checkbook for these new planes, the airline's third quarter earnings were down about 70 percent--but at least they reported a profit. In light of all this news, we wanted to take a look and see if Hawaiian is still the ideal carrier for crossing the Pacific.]]> kjb 2008-11-06T13:45:08-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/9/16/5278/08101

Ever heard of a winglet? We thought it might be something you buy at a fast food chicken franchise but apparently it's something that goes on the end of an airplane's wing. Because it reduces drag, it helps reduce fuel consumption. And that is a Very Good Thing, right?

Apparently winglets are standard issue on most new aircraft, but some airlines are so green that they're getting them retro-fitted. Hawaiian Airlines and Air New Zealand are two of the airlines who are loudly and proudly fitting winglets on their Boeing 767s, apparently at great cost now with a view to long-term savings in fuel consumption.

Winglets are something of a miracle fixture, in fact, because they also improve take-off capabilities and reduce engine maintenance costs. So, a little disappointingly, you can't eat winglets, but they're still doing us good.

Related Stories:
· Sexy New Fuel-Saving Winglets for Air NZ [NZ Herald]
· Hawaiian Airlines Orders Blended Winglets [Asia Travel Tips]

[Photo: cbcastro]]]> amandak 2008-09-16T09:00:28-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/11/1/31859/9224

When go! buzzed into the islands with rock-bottom fares, inter-island dogfights kept prices low to the delight of locals and tourists alike. Fares have fallen from an average of nearly $200 round trip to $50-$80 round trip as the cozy duopoly of Aloha Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines has given way to a ménage à capitalism.

Before starting operations, go!'s parent company, Mesa Air, considered buying both Hawaiian and Aloha out of bankruptcy, going so far as to examine confidential business documents from the carriers. When Mesa decided to go its own way and launch an all-new airline, Hawaiian got mega-miffed and sued. The court case ended with a judge awarding Hawaiian $80 million in damages.

It's such a hit that go! might be forced to shut down. The big loser in all this? Clearly travelers, as you can expect fares to skyrocket once go! flies off. The next stop for the case is US District Court for an appeal.

Alex Salkever is the editor/founder of Hawaii travel blog Hawaiirama.com

Related Stories:
· Mesa to Pay $80M [Star Bulletin]
· Hawaii Travel [Jaunted]
· Hawaii Hotels [HotelChatter]

[Photo: aspengull]]]> ASalkever 2007-11-01T13:00:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/8/29/163330/887

We didn't have to wait too long for Richard Branson to get Virgin America's newest route running: Just weeks after his airline debuted with a JFK-SFO trip, service will start between JFK and LAX today.

But that's not the only new route clogging the perpetually-jammed skies. Other airlines are getting in on the action, too. The latest:
· JetBlue Expanding Fort Lauderdale Routes [JetBlue]
· American Starts DFW-Panama City Service This Winter [CNN Money]
· Delta Taking Mormons Non-Stop to Paris [Delta]
· Skybus Adding Flights for OSU Fans [Skybus]
· Hawaiian Eyeing Expansion to the Philippines [AP, via USA Today]]]> pbb 2007-08-29T17:52:00-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/