Hawaiian Airlines Pilots to Vote on Tentative Agreement to avoid strike

With having almost a monopoly on interisland air traffic in the US State of Hawaii, with no Hawaii Island passenger ferry service operating, Hawaiian Airlines is not only a major player in transportat

With having almost a monopoly on interisland air traffic in the US State of Hawaii, with no Hawaii Island passenger ferry service operating, Hawaiian Airlines is not only a major player in transportation, it managed to maintain a monopoly type standing when it comes to interisland transportation in Hawaii.

A strike by Hawaiian Airlines pilots would not only a hit for the largest industry in the State of Hawaii, travel and tourism, it would also make it impossible to keep commerce and families connected. Therefore the airline has a responsibility exceeding the responsibility other airlines may have.


This path of an almost monopoly status for the air carrier started with the bankruptcy of Aloha Airlines in 2008 and made it solid in 2009 when the only ferry services, known as the Superferry defunct. Superferry was ordered by the Hawaii Supreme Court to stop services after environmental protection organization demonstrated a study was not conducted. Many insiders alleged for Hawaiian Airlines to have played a hidden role in this development. This was never to been proven.

The fear air fares, especially for Hawaiian residents would go up many folds became a reality for the Hawaiian Kamaainas. Hardly anyone now talks about. It makes traveling from one island to another impossible for many in the Aloha State struggling to make ends needs.

High air fares converted to record profit. Hawaiian Airlines was and is on an expansion course and one of the most celebrated, financially solid and on time airline in the United States emerged.

This wealth was not shared with Hawaiian Airlines pilots, according to the Hawaiian Airlines and the Air Line Pilots Association.

Pilots recently threatened with strike what would have been a disaster for State commerce and tourism.

Today the Hawaiian Airlines and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) have reached a Tentative Agreement on a 63-month contract amendment covering the airline’s 665 pilots, the company announced today. ALPA will hold a ratification vote scheduled to take place between March 6 and 24. If ratified, the amendment becomes effective April 1 and remains in effect until July 1, 2022.

“I am pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement that offers our pilots a significant increase in compensation,” said Jon Snook, Hawaiian’s chief operating officer, and the company’s lead negotiator.




The company reached new accords in 2016 with three labor unions representing more than 2,200 employees. It is currently in negotiations with the Association of Flight Attendants, whose contract became amendable in January.

About the author

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Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz has continuously worked in the travel and tourism industry since he was a teenager in Germany (1977).
He founded eTurboNews in 1999 as the first online newsletter for the global travel tourism industry.

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