Hawaiian Airlines to lease four more 767s

By Michele Kayal
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaiian Airlines has signed a deal for four more Boeing 767 aircraft to replace the aging DC-10s it uses on flights to Mainland and Pacific destinations, bringing to seven the total number of replacement planes due in the long-distance fleet by next year.

The company is expected to announce today that it has signed a letter of intent to lease four extended-range Boeing 767-300 aircraft from International Lease Finance Corp. Delivery is anticipated in the first and second quarters of next year, but terms of the lease are still under discussion, company spokesman Keoni Wagner said. The value of the deal was not disclosed. The planes will be 10 to 12 years old, Wagner said.

Hawaiian sealed a $330 million deal with Ansett Worldwide Aviation Inc. for its first three 767s in April, but those planes will be brand new. Those aircraft are scheduled to begin arriving in October.

The 767s will be deployed on routes currently flown by Hawaiian's more than 20-year-old DC-10s. Wagner said it is still unclear, however, whether the 767s will replace all 15 of the DC-10s Hawaiian has in service.

"The evaluation of our widebody operation is still in progress," Wagner said. "The 767s fit in with a certain portion of those plans, and the rest of the replacement program is still being evaluated."

All of the company's 767s will have 252 seats, fewer than the DC-10s, which range from 299 to 304 seats, Wagner said. The new planes will have 18 seats in first class and 234 in coach.

By the end of the year, Hawaiian also expects to have a completely new fleet of interisland aircraft. The company began replacing DC-9 aircraft with new Boeing 717 aircraft in March.