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Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines to merge in US$1.9 Billion deal
Photo: Hawaiian Airlines Alaska Air Group and Hawaiian have announced that they have reached a final agreement. As a result, Alaska Airlines will acquire Hawaiian Airlines for $18.00 per share in cash. The total transaction value is around $1.9 billion, which includes $0.9 billion of net debt from Hawaiian Airlines. With the merger, customers will have access to more destinations and a more comprehensive range of essential air service options across the Pacific, the continental US, and the world. Environmental responsibility, long-term employment prospects for employees, sustained investment in local communities, and a better foundation for development and competitiveness in the United States are all anticipated outcomes of the transaction. If given the go-ahead by regulators, the combination of the two companies is expected to increase the competitiveness of both brands in the highly competitive US airline market, particularly in areas that depend significantly on air travel, such as the 49th and 50th states in the US, Alaska, and Hawai’i. In making the announcement, Alaska Air Group and Hawaiian Holdings empathised that both brands’ unique cultures would be preserved and built upon. As members of the same airline alliance, oneworld, the two airlines could streamline their operations and provide customers with more worldwide connections if they merged. Currently, 54.7 million passengers are served annually by the two airlines combined. “This combination is an exciting next step in our collective journey to provide a better travel experience for our guests and expand options for West Coast and Hawai’i travellers,” Minicucci said. “We have a longstanding and deep respect for Hawaiian Airlines, their role as a top employer in Hawai’i, and how their brand and people carry the warm culture of aloha around the globe. “Our two airlines are powered by incredible employees, with 90+ year legacies and values grounded in caring for the special places and people we serve. “I am grateful to the more than 23,000 Alaska Airlines employees who are proud to have served Hawai’i for over 16 years, and we are fully committed to investing in the communities of Hawai’i and maintaining robust neighbour Island service that Hawaiian Airlines travellers have come to expect. “We look forward to deepening this stewardship as our airlines come together while providing unmatched value to customers, employees, communities and owners.” “Since 1929, Hawaiian Airlines has been an integral part of life in Hawai ‘i, and together with Alaska Airlines, we will be able to deliver more for our guests, employees and the communities we serve,” said Peter Ingram, Hawaiian Airlines President, and CEO. “In Alaska Airlines, we are joining an airline that has long served Hawai‘i and has a complementary network and a shared culture of service. With the additional scale and resources that this transaction with Alaska Airlines brings, we will be able to accelerate investments in our guest experience and technology while maintaining the Hawaiian Airlines brand. “We are also pleased to deliver significant, immediate, and compelling value to our shareholders through this all-cash transaction. Together, Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines can bring our authentic brands of hospitality to more of the world while continuing to serve our valued local communities.” The combination of complementing domestic, international, and freight networks is positioned to increase competition and improve choice for West Coast and Hawaiian Islands customers through: Preserving outstanding brands: The combined airline will maintain both the industry-leading Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines brands while integrating into a single operating platform, enabling customers to enjoy the exceptional service and hospitality of each while upholding the operational reliability, trust, and guest satisfaction for which both companies have been consistently recognised. An improved product offering for a wide range of consumers: The merger preserves and expands high-quality, best-in-class product offerings with price points to make air travel more accessible to a wide range of consumers across a range of cabin classes, including more choice between Alaska Airlines’ high-value, low-fare options and Hawaiian Airlines’ international and long-haul product on par with network carriers. Complementary networks expand travel options: Passengers travelling throughout the Continental United States, the West Coast of the United States, and across the Pacific will benefit from more choice and increased connectivity across both airlines’ networks, with service to 138 destinations, including nonstop service to 29 top international destinations in the Americas, Asia, Australia, and the South Pacific, and combined access to over 1,200 destinations through the oneworld Alliance. Expanded service for Hawai’i residents: The combination will increase service and convenience by tripling the number of destinations in North America that can be reached nonstop or with one stop from the Islands while maintaining robust Neighbour Island service and increasing air cargo capacity. Strategic Honolulu hub: With one-stop service through Hawai’i, Honolulu will become a key Alaska Airlines hub, offering greater international connectivity for West Coast passengers across the Asia-Pacific region. Expanded loyalty programme benefits: The transaction will provide Hawaiian Airlines’ loyalty members with enhanced benefits through the combined airline’s industry-leading loyalty programme, such as the ability to earn and redeem miles on 29 global partners and receive elite benefits on the full complement of oneworld Alliance airlines, expanded global lounge access, and benefits of the combined program’s co-brand credit card. Both airline boards have approved the transaction agreement. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, shareholder approval from Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (expected in the first quarter of 2024), and other usual closing conditions. It is expected to be completed within 12-18 months. Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci will run the merged organisation from its Seattle headquarters. To focus on integration planning, a dedicated leadership team will be formed.
skyticket launches Japan’s first Direct Connection Air Ticket Sales via Hawaiian Airlines’ NDC
Adventure, Inc, powering “skyticket”, an air ticket reservations website, and Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. have entered into a distribution agreement via direct connection for "NDC”, a new distribution standard for the sale of air tickets. The direct NDC connection between the Hawaiian Airlines reservation system and skyticket reservation system will allow for quick confirmation of airfares and seat availability, optimal fares through the NDC connection, and ancillary services such as upgraded seat selection (charges apply) tailored to meet the needs of users. The system also enables full automation of reservations. The fully automated reservation process is expected to increase the closing rate and user satisfaction. With the conclusion of the agreement with Hawaiian Airlines, the number of NDC direct connection agreements has reached a cumulative total of 5 airlines. Adventure, Inc. continues to actively pursue the introduction of NDC, aiming to provide all our worldwide users with more convenient and user-friendly services.
Hawaiian resumes flights to Sydney from 15 December
Hawaiian Airlines is the latest international carrier to announce a return to Australia's shores, with plans to operate five flights per week between Sydney and Honolulu beginning on December 15. Hawaiian Airline's Airbus A330 will fly from Sydney to Honolulu's International Airport five days a week, departing at 9:40 a.m. local time every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday beginning December 15 as HA452. Hawaiian Airlines' return flights from the island depart at 11:50 a.m. and arrive in Sydney at 7:45 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, as HA451. For the time being, the airline will continue the suspension of its three-weekly service between Brisbane and Honolulu. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, Hawaiian Airlines, flying to Australia since 2004, put an end to all Australian operations due to travel restrictions. When the pandemic hit in March 2020, Hawaiian Airlines, flying to Australia since 2004, put an end to all Australian operations due to travel restrictions. Hawaiian Airlines Regional Director for Australia and New Zealand, Andrew Stanbury, said, "We are happy to restore the borders between Hawaii and Australia and have been heartened by the public's response to Australia's nationwide vaccination campaign." Many Australians are eager to return to Hawaii because it is such a popular holiday destination. We are excited to welcome our guests back to the board and provide them with the genuine hospitality they have come to expect from us and have sorely missed." Passengers from other countries will have to submit confirmation of immunisation and a negative COVID-19 test before departing. Still, the state of Hawaii is likely to harmonise its standards with US government laws. Domestic passengers from the US mainland will be welcomed back to the Hawaiian Islands on November 1.
Hawaiian Airlines to mandate vaccinations for U.S.-based staff
Hawaiian Airlines has informed its US employees that they will be required to be vaccinated against Covid-19, making it the third major carrier to do so in less than a week. According to a staff memo reviewed by CNBC, CEO Peter Ingram told employees on Monday that if they are receiving a two-dose vaccine, they must receive their second shot by Nov. 1, though there will be exceptions for medical or religious reasons. United Airlines became the country's first major carrier to require vaccines last week, requiring its 67,000-person U.S. workforce to show proof of immunisation by Oct. 25 at the latest. Frontier Airlines has also announced that it will require its employees to be vaccinated against Covid by Oct. 1 or to be tested on a regular basis. “It is not a decision I take lightly, and I would acknowledge that my own thinking on this has evolved over the last few months as I have watched this pandemic continue to take its terrible toll,” Ingram said in his note. He said senior leadership “deliberated extensively” and consulted the board of directors. “Safety is the foundation of air travel, and it is ingrained throughout our operation and service. This is no different,” he said. Most other U.S. airlines have encouraged, but not required, their employees to get vaccinated. Delta Air Lines, on the other hand, announced in the spring that new hires would be required to show proof of vaccination. Several weeks later, United followed suit. Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly told employees on Monday that United's announcement last week prompted questions about the airline's stance from its own employees. “We continue to strongly encourage Employees to get vaccinated,” Kelly said. “We are continually evaluating the effects of the pandemic. Obviously, I am very concerned about the latest Delta variant, and the effect on the health and safety of our Employees and our operation, but nothing has changed.” More than a dozen large U.S. companies have issued vaccine mandates for all or some of their employees in recent weeks, some executives citing concerns about the fast-spreading delta variant of Covid.
Hawaiian plea to airlines: Please don’t bring so many people here
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Maui residents had their tropical oasis virtually to themselves. Then suddenly the visitors all came flooding back. “Over-tourism” has long been a complaint of locals on the Hawaiian island that is among the world’s most popular getaways: congested roads, crowded beaches, packed restaurants. However, as the United States begins to recover from the pandemic, Maui is experiencing some of the same strains as the rest of the country, such as a shortage of hospitality workers. And its restaurants, which are still operating at capacity, are struggling to keep up. In recent months, the Hawaiian island of Maui has become so overrun with tourists that its mayor has taken the unusual step of pleading with airlines to fly in fewer people. As mainlanders return in droves, Maui officials are making an unusual request of airlines: Please don't bring so many people to our island. “We don’t have the authority to say stop, but we are asking the powers to be to help us,” Mayor Michael Victorino said at a recent news conference. Hawaii has had some of the most stringent coronavirus public health restrictions in the country, and it's the only state that hasn't fully reopened, owing to its remote location and limited hospitals. The memory of diseases that wiped out 80% of the Native Hawaiian population in the century after Europeans arrived is also fresh in people's minds. The governor does not intend to lift all restrictions until 70% of the state's population has been immunised. As of Friday, 58% of them were. Nonetheless, Hawaii has become an appealing destination as other states relax regulations, particularly because some international travel remains restricted. And Maui is a popular destination for vacationers from the United States mainland, where the rate of Covid-19 vaccinations has been rapid. The Hawaii Tourism Authority reported that 215,148 visitors visited the island in May, compared to just 1054 in the same month last year when tourism virtually ceased due to Covid-19 fears and Hawaii's requirement that visitors quarantine upon arrival. That is not far off from the 251,665 visitors who arrived in May 2019. Even more are expected over the July 4 holiday weekend, with the Maui Visitors Bureau anticipating arrivals will at least equal 2019 levels. Restaurants, which are operating at 50 per cent capacity, are feeling the crunch. “We’re under more pressure than we’ve been in pre-Covid, that’s for damn sure,” said Jack Starr, who manages Kimo’s in Lahaina, which has a reservation waitlist almost two months out. Eateries will be allowed to start filling 75 per cent of their seats later this week, but Starr says the employee shortage and a 6-foot (2-metre) distancing requirement for tables leave their hands tied. “Are you kidding me?” he said. “You got to take that down to 3 feet, and we might have something going here.” Three waterfalls by the Hana Highway near Hana, Hawaii. Maui is a favourite spot for vacationers from the US mainland., The mayor also mentioned illegal parking on Maui's famed Hana Highway, a two-lane country road that winds its way along the island's lush northern coast, with the ocean on one side and breathtaking valleys and waterfalls on the other. Tourists stop to take pictures, clogging the road and raising concerns about what would happen if a fire truck or ambulance couldn't pass. According to Victorino, Maui's main airport in Kahului is also overcrowded, and its emergency services are taxed. “It’s the airlift that really drives all of this,” he said, using an airline industry term for transporting people and cargo. “Without airlift, people don’t come.” Victorino stated that he has asked airlines to voluntarily limit seats to Maui, but he did not specify which airlines he spoke with. The companies are under no obligation to do what he requests, and it is unclear whether any will. Hawaiian Airlines spokesman Alex Da Silva stated that the company, as “Hawaii's hometown airline,” is aware of the strain the rebound in arrivals has placed on infrastructure, natural resources, and communities. However, he also stated that visitors are the driving force behind the state's economic recovery. He stated that Hawaiian Airlines is eager to continue working with the mayor and other leaders to find solutions. Alaska Airlines reported that it is operating an average of ten daily flights to Maui from the United States' West Coast, which is similar to the number of flights it operated in the summer of 2019. According to the company, it understands residents' concerns and recently met with the mayor and council members to discuss how they can "work together on responsibly rebuilding Maui's tourism industry and economy." Not everyone believes that reducing airline travel is the solution. Mufi Hannemann, president of the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association, expressed concern that the mayor's request sends a mixed message at a time when both the tourism industry and the overall economy are struggling. Not everyone thinks curbing airline travel is the answer. "People are still unemployed. And businesses are still struggling," he said. Over tourism, according to Maui County Council member Kelly King, is the problem. She emphasised that according to Maui's community plan, the average daily census of visitors should not exceed 33% of the island's 150,000 residents. However, that figure is currently in the range of 42% to 45%. She said the mayor's request to airlines is a good start, but she wants the county to pass a bill she sponsored that would put a moratorium on new hotel construction in the island's most popular tourist areas, south and west Maui. According to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, 215,148 visitors visited the island in May, up from 1054 in the same month last year. King argued the pandemic underscored the risks of overly relying on tourism to power the economy, noting Maui’s 34 per cent unemployment rate led the nation after travel screeched to a halt. It has since improved to 10.4 per cent but is still far above the pre-pandemic level of 2.1 per cent. City Council member Yuki Lei Sugimura said residents are frustrated but appreciate travellers. “The visitor – they are our No. 1 economic driver. They create jobs. So, they are very important to us. But people are saying we want to have a balance,” she said. In the meantime, many businesses are labouring under stressful conditions, said Aman Kheiri of Lahaina's Sea House Restaurant. “We are experiencing hostile guests, mostly tourists who are fed up with the regulations and a lack of restaurant reservations,” Kheiri said. “The question is, how can we accommodate the consistently increasing numbers of tourists arriving daily?"
A Hawaiian experience! ANA carries out sightseeing flight with Flying Honu
The ‘Flying Honu’ from All Nippon Airways (ANA) operating on the Narita-Honolulu route in usual circumstances, welcomed passengers aboard for an hour and a half scenic flight. The carrier sought to provide customers with the pleasures of air travel during these difficult times, and approximately 300 lucky passengers who were able to purchase the ‘platinum’ tickets through a 1:150 chance enjoyed a Hawaiian resort experience at the airport and onboard. The design of this special aircraft comes from the Hawaiian sea turtle—a symbol of good luck and prosperity, in a hope that all passengers traveling with ANA will be blessed with happiness. As with its regular flights, the ANA Care Promise safety and hygiene protocols including wearing masks, social distancing and continuous air ventilation were thoroughly implemented at all stages of the flight.
Kilauea eruption – Hawaii governor assures “travel is safe to the Hawaiian Islands”
Hawaii Governor David Ige reassured travellers that it is safe to visit Hawaii saying that that the Kilauea volcano is being closely monitored. Ige added that they have a team of skilled scientists, geologists, meteorologists, health experts, and law enforcers working round the clock monitoring the volcanic activity to provide clear and updated report regarding public safety. The experts are telling us there is no danger from the eruptions to anyone outside the areas that have been evacuated. Hawaii Governor David Ige “This is a time to listen to the experts on-site and to trust what they are reporting and recommending. The experts are telling us there is no danger from the eruptions to anyone outside the areas that have been evacuated." "There is no threat of a tsunami. Air quality is being closely studied and is of most concern in the immediate area inside where the volcanic activity is taking place,” Ige said in a statement. “Our foremost concern is for the residents in the affected communities. They are receiving all available support from government agencies and officials to cope with the volcano activity and carry on with their lives as best as possible,” the government official added. The governor named a list of islands that travellers can comfortably book – Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Kauai. The governor also assured that their vacation in these islands will not be affected by the volcanic activity. "Summer is just a couple of weeks away and there is no reason for travelers to delay in booking their vacation plans. The number of flights serving Hawaii has never been greater and there is an abundance of choices for travelers to select in choosing the accommodations and activities they want to enjoy in the Hawaiian Islands," George D. Szigeti, president and CEO of the Hawaii Tourism Authority. Kilauea, Hawaii It is business as usual for Hawaii. While some travellers are hesitant about flying to the state, others are attracted to film the volcanic activity. Kilauea has been an active volcano since 1983 and is one of Hawaii's most popular attractions. However, most of the park is currently closed until further notice.
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