Alaskan Airlines to acquire Hawaiian Airlines for $1.9 billion, including debt

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU/Gray News) - Alaska Airlines announced Sunday that it will be acquiring Hawaiian Airlines in a merger agreement, according to company officials.

The largest airline company in the state and the fifth-largest in the country, Alaska Airlines said in a press release that the $1.9 billion acquisition of Hawaii’s largest airline will expand the combined fleet to 365 planes and will offer 138 destinations for flyers, as well as nonstop service to 29 international cities across Asia, Australia, the South Pacific, and North America.

The airline said it will continue to offer flights between the Hawaiian islands as the original Hawaiian Airlines did for years.

Alaska Airlines said Honolulu will become a key hub for travelers with the merger, and will add new flights to Asian and Pacific destinations.

The $1.9 billion price tag translates to $18 per share for investors and will include $900 million of debt from Hawaiian Airlines.

The two airlines were not immune to the devastating impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic had on worldwide travel. Alaska reported a net loss of $232 million in the first few months of the pandemic in spring 2020.

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci praised the relationship that the two airlines have shared over decades of service, saying that Hawaiian Airlines — which has been in operation since 1929 — and Alaska Airlines — which was born in 1932 as McGee Airways — merging will allow Alaska to open up expanded service to customers.

“We have a longstanding and deep respect for Hawaiian Airlines, for their role as a top employer in Hawai’i, and for how their brand and people carry the warm culture of aloha around the globe,” Minicucci said. “I am grateful to the more than 23,000 Alaska Airlines employees who are proud to have served Hawai’i for over 16 years, and we are fully committed to investing in the communities of Hawai’i and maintaining robust Neighbor Island service that Hawaiian Airlines travelers have come to expect.

“We look forward to deepening this stewardship as our airlines come together, while providing unmatched value to customers, employees, communities and owners.”

In response to the news, the union representing the two airlines — the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA — expressed support for the deal.

“Our first priority is to determine whether this merger will improve conditions for Flight Attendants just like the benefits the companies have described for shareholders and consumers. Our support of the merger will depend on this,” the statement read. “Mergers take time – this will not happen overnight. Our union will continue to press forward in negotiations at Alaska Airlines. Alaska Flight Attendants, joined by Hawaiian Flight Attendants, will be on the picket line Dec. 19 as holiday travel takes off.”

The union represents more than 9,000 flight attendants between the two airlines.

KHNL reports Hawaiian Airlines President and CEO Peter Ingram said Hawaiian Airlines will continue to operate under its own brand.

Hawaiian Airlines President and CEO Peter Ingram that they will continue to operate under the Hawaiian Airlines brand, and that flights can continue to be booked on the Hawaiian Airlines website and HawaiianMiles will still retain their value.

“You can continue to book, track, and manage flights - as well as earn and redeem HawaiianMiles and enjoy frequent flyer benefits - through our app and online at HawaiianAirlines.com. Thank you for your continued support of Hawaiian Airlines,” he said in a statement.

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