A federal judge yesterday approved the $10 million sale of Aloha Airlines' anti-trust lawsuit against the parent of go! airline.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Lloyd King said he was satisfied with the efforts to sell the legal claims to California-based Yucaipa Co., even though no other bidders had emerged.

"Of all the entities in this case, Yucaipa has lost the most," said Robert Klyman, attorney for Yucaipa and Aloha's court-appointed trustee Dane Field.

Aloha sued Phoenix-based Mesa Air Group in January 2007, alleging the company misused confidential information to launch go! and drive Aloha out of business.

A similar lawsuit by Hawaiian Airlines was settled earlier this year for $52.5 million.

Aloha filed for bankruptcy and shut down its passenger service in March.

Aloha's lawsuit is scheduled to go to trial in October but an attorney for Mesa said he expects the date to be pushed back,

The 62-year-old Aloha was the state's second-largest airline with more than 3,500 employees.

The company shut down its passenger service on March 31 after losing more than $120 million in the past two years because of soaring fuel prices and a heated interisland fare war.

Yucaipa, headed by grocery store billionaire Ron Burkle, is one of Aloha's creditors and is the airline's largest shareholder.

In 2005, Yucaipa and former professional football star Willie Gault purchased Aloha and brought it out of bankruptcy.