Aloha-Hawaiian | End of a 55-year rivalry
Some fear higher fares, fewer flights
By Katherine Nichols and Christie Wilson
Advertiser Staff Writers
News of Hawaiian and Aloha airlines' merger hit Hawai'i residents hard yesterday, leaving many worried that with just one airline there will inevitably be higher fares and fewer flights.
Cory Lum • The Honolulu Advertiser
And while company officials said they would hold the line on some fares and talk with the attorney general about setting others, many residents still expressed concern.
Travelers check in at Aloha Airlines' terminal at Honolulu International Airport. The airline flies about 120 flights daily.
"There's no competition so prices won't be kept in check anymore," said Terry Shigematsu of Kailua. "Fares could just skyrocket."
Hawai'i's airways are among the busiest in the country, catering to tourists, daily commuters and vital cargo runs. In 1999, Hawai'i had two of the nation's 20 busiest routes, according to federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics. More people traveled between Honolulu and Maui than between New York and Washington, or between Dallas and Houston, according to the data.
Rachel Shimamoto, manager of Travel Ways travel agency estimated yesterday that interisland coupons account for about 15 percent of her company's air travel business.
And because most interisland fliers are paying leisure or resident fares, the flights are some of the least profitable in the country. Both Aloha and Hawaiian say the market has been barely break-even for a decade or more.
Shimamoto was skeptical of promises to hold fares steady for two years, pointing out that the new company can "charge whatever, but if they're real friends of the state of Hawai'i, they won't do that."
Employees heard the news at the same time, in the same way, as the general public, said Shimamoto, whose husband works for Aloha Airlines. And although she said they found the way the information was relayed "shocking," she also expressed hope in the new leader, chairman Greg Brenneman, who turned around an ailing Continental Airlines.
"If Brenneman can do what he did for Continental, it might show some kind of light," she said.
Others were cautiously optimistic as well.
"I assume everything will be stable if they merge,'' said Scott Matsuura, who lives on Maui and commutes weekdays on Aloha to his job with Alexander & Baldwin on O'ahu. "I can't imagine it getting a whole lot worse.''
Some residents said they would travel less if fares increase.
Family trips to the Neighbor Islands might become less frequent, said Palolo Valley resident Michael Schwinn. "That would make a big difference, because if you're taking your kids, you just wouldn't go," he said. "It would prevent me from going to the outer islands as easily and as frequently."
Businesses that rely on the two interisland carriers for sending out shipments of goods such as fresh flowers and produce were also cautious.
Maui Pineapple Co. in Kahului uses both Aloha and Hawaiian to ship fresh-cut and whole pineapples to the other islands and uses Hawaiian to send its fruit to the Mainland.
"We've already had trouble with problems with lift out of Maui, and now with two airlines becoming one, it's not going to be good for us," said Hawai'i sales manager Judy Nakamura.
So far this year, Maui Pine has shipped 15,100 cases of pineapple within Hawai'i. Because air freight costs are high, half the shipments were sent via barge, and the company said it may have to rely more on ocean shippers if air costs increase.
Flower farmers in Kula also are worried that the merger will mean higher freight costs and fewer flights.
Paradise Flower Farms makes almost daily shipments of lei, tuberose, carnation heads and cut flowers to Kaua'i, Kona and Ho-nolulu.
"The rates will go up for all of us, whether for personal or business travel — that's what happens when you have a monopoly," sales manager Mike Parton said.
Maui Floral uses Aloha for several daily interisland shipments and Hawaiian to import roses and spring flowers from the Mainland.
"We've been very happy customers for over 25 years," said owner Carver Wilson. "(The merger) will reduce the competitive aspect of the market. It doesn't seem like a match made in heaven to me. The two airlines are very different. Hawaiian just bought new jets, and Aloha has a loyal following, so it struck me as an odd match."
On Kaua'i, the possible loss of airline jobs worried Chamber of Commerce President Mamo Pi'ilani Cummings.
"If we're going to lose as many jobs as they say we are, we're going to be hurting again. We already lost two cruise ships, so we're sitting on pins and needles on how this thing is going to pan out," Cummings said.
"We've gone through (Hurricane) Iniki, and our attitudes are very optimistic, but we can do without any more layoffs — not to mention when you have only one central carrier of anything, the rates are going to skyrocket, and a lot of business people here and well as government people travel quite frequently to O'ahu."
Maui Visitors Bureau Executive Director Marsha Wienert is taking a wait-and-see attitude. Fares, she said, will only rise as high as the market can bear, but the number of flights the carriers might offer concerns her.
"If service continues at the present levels, it will be a positive step because the result would be financially stronger air carriers," she said. "It's hard to compete in a marketplace where our numbers are down, especially from Japan."
Some said a merger was better than the possibility of both airlines going out of business. "It's tough to sustain two airlines in this market, and we have a merger-mania climate right now," said Marni Herkes, president of the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce.
Still, she said, "it's sad to see. It's like losing a good friend. My hope is that we will have more flights and they can operate more efficiently."
Advertiser Staff Writers Hugh Clark and Timothy Hurley contributed to this report.
