Hawaiian Airlines is slowly disappearing in front of our eyes

In this week’s air travel news, Spirit Airlines is offering the federal government a big equity stake in the airline in exchange for a last-minute financial bailout, and the idea is drawing plenty of criticism; JetBlue’s CEO denies bankruptcy rumors; American Airlines dismisses the notion of a merger with United; low-cost Allegiant’s planned acquisition of Sun Country Airlines clears a major regulatory hurdle; United deploys its premium-heavy new 787 Dreamliner on a key transatlantic route out of San Francisco; a regional airline announces two new routes out of Merced, and Delta suspends a Sacramento route; Hawaiian Airlines joins the global Oneworld alliance; Frontier Airlines rolls out the cheapest version yet of its unlimited travel pass; and San Jose’s airport showcases new tech wizardry that answers travelers’ questions.

Alaska Airlines this week took another big step in integrating operations with its Hawaiian Airlines affiliate, announcing that Hawaiian has joined Alaska as a member of American Airlines’ Oneworld global alliance. That means Hawaiian customers who belong to Atmos Rewards — the combined Alaska/Hawaiian loyalty program — can now earn and redeem program points and claim elite status benefits when they fly on any of the 14 other airlines in the alliance, which collectively fly to almost 1,000 destinations in more than 170 countries. And loyalty program members of Oneworld’s other airlines can now earn and spend points and use elite status benefits on Hawaiian Airlines flights.

Alaska noted that Hawaiian this week also converted its passenger service system to Sabre, the same one Alaska Airlines uses. The change will provide customers of both airlines with “a more seamless and consistent travel experience from booking to boarding across a growing global network,” Alaska said, noting that the Sabre technology “connects the digital tools and programs used by guests and employees; from websites, mobile app, Atmos Rewards and Huakai by Hawaiian loyalty programs, to airport kiosks and reservation records.” Meanwhile, the “HA” airline code on all Hawaiian flight numbers has now been replaced with Alaska’s “AS” code, according to Simple Flying.

Last week, we noted that low-cost Spirit Airlines, in its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding in less than a year, was said to be on the verge of liquidation as soaring jet fuel prices caused by the Iran war blew a hole in its financial recovery program. But now the troubled airline is counting on relief from a source other than traditional lenders: the federal government. And at week’s end, it appeared to be on the verge of getting it as feverish talks in Washington sought to hammer out a rescue deal. According to a report first published in the Air Current, an aviation journal, Spirit asked the Trump administration for “hundreds of millions of dollars in emergency funding” to help pay its fuel bills and keep it out of imminent liquidation. The publication said its information came from “sources familiar with the discussions.” President Donald Trump said during an interview on CNBC this week that a federal bailout was not out of the question: “Spirit’s in trouble. … Maybe the federal government should help that one out.” But he also suggested that another carrier might be Spirit’s salvation: “I don’t mind mergers. I think I’d love somebody to buy Spirit, as an example.” 

Meanwhile, Bloomberg News reported that Spirit was willing to offer the government an equity stake in the company in exchange for a bailout that could keep it in business, and both CNBC and the Wall Street Journal said that Spirit and the White House were in advanced talks on a financing package that could loan Spirit up to $500 million in exchange for warrants giving the government up to a 90% stake in the carrier. Partial government ownership of an airline would be something new for the industry, and the idea is meeting stiff resistance, even from some Republican lawmakers. NBC News quoted J.P. Morgan veteran airline analyst Jamie Baker as warning that if the Trump administration bails out Spirit, “We believe JetBlue and Frontier would be inclined to quickly follow Spirit’s lead.”

During the pandemic, Congress passed the CARES Act, which gave airlines $50 billion in government support when they were faced with plummeting passenger numbers — but that was to save the entire industry. As One Mile at a Time’s Ben Schlappig wrote this week, “I don’t want to be unsympathetic, but I don’t think taxpayer money should go toward keeping one struggling airline alive, essentially just subsidizing airfare for a matter of months. For that matter, the government taking a stake in individual airlines just seems like a bad idea for competition.” View From the Wing’s Gary Leff also gave the idea a thumbs-down. “There is absolutely no legal authority for the administration to take an ownership stake in Spirit Airlines as a form of bailout,” he wrote. “The government has bailed out airlines before. But that was with explicit legislation,” and it included $754 million for Spirit at the time. “This is a huge conflict of interest and leads to bad decision-making,” he added, since federal agencies might be more inclined to cut Spirit a break in their regulatory rulings in order to protect the government’s investment. 

Another airline in financial distress — JetBlue — is dismissing a prediction reported last week from its founder David Neeleman, who said that given the skyrocketing cost of fuel and its large debt load, JetBlue might have to declare bankruptcy. Reuters said this week that JetBlue CEO Joanna Geraghty declared in a memo to employees that the company is not considering a bankruptcy filing — not in the current fiscal year, at least. “We’re operating in an environment that is more challenging than we had expected at the beginning of the year particularly as it relates to fuel prices,” she said in the memo, but the airline recently secured $500 million in additional financing by putting up 22 of its aircraft as collateral and has an option to get $250 million more by the same method. Simple Flying’s Alexander Mitchell said Geraghty’s statement “is designed to improve employee and investor confidence more than it actually changes anything fundamental. JetBlue still has to prove that it can turn that liquidity runway into sustainable profits, so the outlook shifts from acute distress to pressured but still manageable recovery.”

After widespread media reports last week that United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby floated the possibility of a merger with American Airlines during a White House meeting in February, American finally responded to the rumors by shooting them down. “American Airlines is not engaged with or interested in any discussions regarding a merger with United Airlines,” the company wrote in a statement. “While changes in the broader airline marketplace may be necessary, a combination with United would be negative for competition and for consumers, and therefore inconsistent with our understanding of the Administration’s philosophy toward the industry and principles of antitrust law. Our focus will remain on executing on our strategic objectives and positioning American to win for the long term.” United has also been suggested as a possible merger partner for JetBlue, where financial difficulties in recent months have been exacerbated by skyrocketing jet fuel prices created by the Iran war. It’s just as well American rebuffed a United deal. According to a Reuters report, Trump said this week that while in general “I don’t mind mergers,” he didn’t like the idea of two large, strong carriers combining. “American it’s doing fine, and United is doing very well. I know the United people, they’re doing very well. I don’t like having them merge,” Trump said.

Speaking of mergers, low-cost Allegiant’s proposed acquisition of Sun Country Airlines got a boost as the Transportation Department granted an interim exemption “that will allow both airlines to continue operating as separate carriers under common ownership after closing,” Allegiant said in news release. Since it was announced in January, the deal was considered unlikely to draw opposition from the Justice Department on antitrust grounds since the two airlines’ route systems have virtually no overlap. Allegiant said the DOT’s granting of its exemption request “satisfies the last remaining regulatory approval-related condition to the closing of the proposed transaction.” The acquisition is still subject to approval by the stockholders of both companies, and the airlines have scheduled special shareholder meetings for May 8. “Allegiant and Sun Country now expect the closing to occur as early as May 13, 2026 following shareholder approval at the special meetings,” Allegiant said.

Following its recent debut on the San Francisco-Singapore route, United Airlines’ new upscale version of the 787 Dreamliner — which features what it calls “the United Elevated interior” — is due to start flying its second long-haul route next week. On April 30, the new aircraft is scheduled to go into service between SFO and London Heathrow (UA flight 901). The upgraded 787 features eight Polaris Studio Suites — “lie-flat, all-aisle-access seats that are 25% larger than standard United Polaris seats with privacy doors, an extra ottoman seat, exclusive entrée options, an Ossetra caviar amuse-bouche service, new amenity kits with elevated skincare offerings, wireless charging, Bluetooth connectivity, and a huge 27-inch, 4K OLED seatback screen — the largest among U.S. carriers,” United said. It also has 56 regular lie-flat Polaris seats, 35 premium economy seats, 39 Economy Plus extra-legroom seats, and 84 regular economy seats.  

In domestic route news, the regional carrier Contour Airlines said it plans to introduce new service from Merced to Los Angeles International and Las Vegas starting July 1. The service from Merced Yosemite Regional Airport will operate once a day to LAX and five days a week to Las Vegas, using the airline’s 30-seat regional jets. Sacramento International Airport said this week that Delta is making a “seasonal adjustment” to its Sacramento-Detroit service, suspending the route after May 31 and not resuming it until March 2027.

Low-cost Frontier Airlines is looking to stimulate summer bookings by announcing its GoWild Summer Pass at what it calls “its lowest ever introductory price” of $199. That’s good for five months of unlimited travel on Frontier, with an added incentive to buy it early: “Now through May 8, all pass holders can book flights early with no blackout dates and with dedicated seats on all domestic Frontier flights through September 8,” the airline said in a news release. The general purchase terms of the GoWild pass otherwise only allow bookings to be made the day before departure for domestic flights or 10 days in advance for international trips. Reservations must be made through the airline’s website or its mobile app. 

As the airport for Silicon Valley, San Jose Mineta has added a new high-tech feature designed to showcase the possibilities of robotics and artificial intelligence. Its name is José — a humanoid robot that uses interactive AI to answer travelers’ questions. Developed by a local startup company called InBot, José sits behind a desk in SJC’s Terminal B near Gate 24 in a four-month pilot program. The airport said in a news release that the robot is “designed to greet travelers, answer questions and provide real-time information in 50+ languages.” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said the AI robot, and its language ability, should be especially helpful this summer when the airport expects to welcome “thousands of visitors from around the world for the FIFA World Cup.”