Hawaiian Airlines' president resigns

By Frank Cho
Advertiser Staff Writer

Less than a month after Hawaiian Airlines ended its planned merger with rival Aloha Airlines, company president and chief operating officer Robert Zoller is stepping down.

Zoller, who was instrumental in Hawaiian's acquisition and integration of its fleet of Boeing 717 aircraft, will leave the airline April 15 to "pursue professional opportunities outside the company," Hawaiian said in statement yesterday.

Paul Casey, Hawaiian's vice chairman and chief executive officer, will add the title of president.

The airline will also promote H. Norman Davies to executive vice president of operations from vice president of safety and security.

Zoller joined Hawaiian in December 1999 as executive vice president and was promoted in January 2001 to his current position.

He previously worked as senior vice president of maintenance and engineering at AirTrans Airways, where he directed that company's integration of new Boeing 717 aircraft.

The changes come as Hawaiian begins to chart a new course after its merger with Aloha collapsed earlier this month.

The merger fell apart, with each side giving different reasons for the deal's demise.

Hawaiian cited increasing costs, which reached between $3 million and $4 million, and risks associated with the completion of the merger.