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Hawaiian Airlines history
Hawaiian Airlines company history timeline
Hawaiian Airlines was incorporated on January 30, 1929 under the name Inter-Island Airways Ltd.
Inter-Island introduced airmail service between Oahu (site of Honolulu), Hawaii, and Kauai in 1934.
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.
Competition had landed in the islands with the 1946 creation of Trans-Pacific Airlines, forerunner of Aloha Airlines.
Modern pressurized equipment was introduced from 1952 in the form of the Convair 340.
A single four-engine DC-6 purchased in 1958 allowed the carrier to operate long-distance military charters.
In 1966, booming residential and tourist traffic prompted Hawaiian to begin operating the McDonnell Douglas DC-9, the first jet turbine aircraft to be used on inter-island flights.
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.
The last were sold in 1974.
In 1982, Hawaiian adopted the corporate name HAL.
In 1984, Hawaiian began to provide worldwide charter services with three long-range DC-8 jets, scheduled service to Pago Pago starting soon after their addition into the fleet.
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.
Soon after, in early 1985, the company received the first two of its leased Lockheed L-1011 TriStars.
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.
The company built the West Maui Airport in 1987.
Opened in 1987, the airport was designed with a 3,000-foot runway, which constrained its ability to handle large aircraft.
A group of investors led by Jet America founder J. Thomas Talbot bought a 46.5 percent stake in HAL for $37 million in 1989.
In 1990, Condé Nast Traveler pronounced the airline one of the world's safest after a 20-year survey.
Losses for 1991 amounted to $99 million (including a one-time accounting charge of $36.7 million).
Challenges against the airline mounted in 1991.
As if ferocious competition and high fuel costs were not enough to deflate the company's tentative comeback, Hurricane Iniki chased away an estimated $7 million of HAL's business in 1992.
Due to the airline's increasingly unprofitable operations, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 1993.
As part of Hawaiian's restructuring, it sold Kapalua Airport to the State of Hawaii in 1993.
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.
Launched in 1995, it features an updated Pualani logo known as “the flower of the sky” (which was originally created by Landor Associates – the same branding agency that designed the Delta livery and the British Airways livery). Basically, it was a modern evolution of an existing brand.
New York's Smith Management Co. provided $20 million of desperately needed cash in 1996.
In February 1997, Bruce Nobles stepped down as CEO to be replaced by travel executive Paul Casey.
The company lost $2.4 million in the first quarter of 1997 and $4.1 million for the previous year, thanks to a 20 percent increase in fuel prices.
Nearly all of those Hawaiian DC-10′s were fading pretty badly and looked downright rough by the time they started being phased out in the early 2000′s.
With brand new Airbus A330’s entering the fleet in the early 2000’s it was necessary to move away from the bare metal livery.
An all new Hawaiian Airlines livery was unveiled in 2001 to address that problem.
In March 2003, Hawaiian Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in its history.
As of May 2005, Hawaiian Airlines had received court approval of its reorganization plan.
On the 2nd of June, 2005, the company emerged from bankruptcy protection, and continued operations keeping its safety record clean and adding new aircraft to the fleet.
In 2006, Hawaiian Airlines was rated as the best carrier serving Hawaii by Travel + Leisure, Zagat and Condé Nast Traveler.
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.
In response to the closure of ATA Airlines and Aloha Airlines, the airline began flights to Oakland on May 1, 2008.
On February 16, 2010, Hawaiian Airlines sought approval from the United States Department of Transportation to begin nonstop flights from its hub at Honolulu to Tokyo-Haneda sometime in 2010.
The flight began service on November 18, 2010.
On January 12, 2011, Hawaiian Airlines began nonstop service to Seoul-Incheon, South Korea.
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 July 11, 2013, the airline signed a codeshare agreement with China Airlines.
Service began on March 11, 2014, to Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi.
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.
On January 5, 2015, Hawaiian refiled its previously rejected application with the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) for the Kona-Haneda route with service, if approved, to begin in June.
In June 2015, Hawaiian Airlines opened the doors to The Plumeria Lounge, its 3,600-square-foot lounge at the Honolulu International Airport.
All other Hawaiian Airlines passengers can purchase a $40 lounge pass.In May 2016, Hawaiian Airlines received its first Airbus A330 aircraft featuring fully lie-flat seating.
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.
In April 2019, Hawaiian Airlines launched Boston – Honolulu non-stop service, the longest regularly scheduled domestic route in US history.
Due to the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawaiian Airlines reported a net loss of over $100 million for the Q2 of 2020.
In March 2021, Hawaiian Airlines launched three new nonstop routes, Honolulu – Orlando, Honolulu – Ontario, and Maui – Long Beach.
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.
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Hawaiian Airlines competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republic Airways Holdings | 1973 | $1.3B | 451 | 123 |
| Air Wisconsin Airlines | 1965 | $530.0M | 1,500 | 19 |
| Delta Air Lines | 1924 | $61.6B | 86,564 | 283 |
| Kalitta Air | 1967 | $390.0M | 1,100 | 126 |
| Lufthansa | 1953 | $39.0B | 138,353 | 10 |
| Total Airport Services | 2004 | $40.0M | 3,000 | 2 |
| Lws | - | - | - | - |
| Clarke | 1964 | $90.0M | 375 | 77 |
| Papillon | 1965 | $19.0M | 125 | 1 |
| Air France | 1933 | $17.3B | 84,714 | - |
Hawaiian Airlines history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of Hawaiian Airlines, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about Hawaiian Airlines. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at Hawaiian Airlines. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by Hawaiian Airlines. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of Hawaiian Airlines and its employees or that of Zippia.
Hawaiian Airlines may also be known as or be related to HAWAIIAN HOLDINGS INC, Hawaiian Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines Inc, Hawaiian Holdings Inc and Hawaiian Holdings, Inc.