A new bidder has emerged for Aloha Airlines' cargo division.

Aloha said yesterday that it received an offer from Jupiter Holdings Group LLC for its freight division, which handles 85 percent of the air cargo between Honolulu and the Neighbor Islands.

Jupiter is bidding more than $13.6 million for the 300-employee cargo division.

Aloha would not provide further details. The airline, which shut down its passenger service and laid off 1,900 workers on March 31, is auctioning its profitable cargo division.

Jupiter, led by venture capitalist Rick Cho, is the former owner of the Royal Garden Hotel and Spa in Waikiki. Earlier this year, the company sold the hotel to the Wyndham chain.

Cho could not be reached for immediate comment.

The new bidder comes as the Seattle-based owner of Young Brothers/Hawaiian Tug & Barge said it has dropped out of the bidding for Aloha's cargo division.

Saltchuk Resources Inc. said it offered $13 million but pulled out when the carrier unexpectedly raised the price.

Founded in 1946, Aloha was the state's second-largest airline before it closed its passenger services after losing more than $120 million during the past two years.

The company, which filed for bankruptcy protection on March 20, said it would sell off its remaining assets.

On Thursday, a federal bankruptcy judge approved the $2.05 million sale of its contract services division to Los Angeles-based Pacific Air Cargo.

The 1,100-employee contract services division handles customer service, baggage service, ticket agents and ramp agents for United Airlines, Japan Airlines and other carriers that serve Hawai'i.

Jupiter's bid was disclosed yesterday during a hearing at federal bankruptcy court Downtown. During the hearing, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Lloyd King heard arguments about a labor dispute between Aloha and its pilots union.

Earlier this week, members of the Aloha's Air Line Pilots Union voted to authorize a strike after the airline assigned lower-seniority pilots to fly Aloha's cargo routes.

The pilots yesterday agreed to hold off a strike at least until next week pending further hearings on the matter by the bankruptcy court.