Spirit of Aloha | Message of Aloha | May/June 2004

Message of Aloha

Dancing to Our Own Tune

The nation's low-cost carriers have become the darlings of the media whirl while the Big Six airlines have become the whipping boys.

The discounters are continually being lauded for their no-frills, tell-a-few-jokes, pay-as-you-go customer service while the so-called "legacy" carriers are doing all they can to copy the low-cost formula on the one hand, and carry on the tradition of full-service on the other.

Of course there are fundamental differences in cost structure between the long-established national carriers and their brash competitors. For example, an analyst who looked at the number of employees per aircraft found that the profitable Southwest Airlines had about 85 workers per plane, while bankrupt United had 116, after slimming down from 173.

While there seems to be a story about JetBlue the Giant Killer in every publication I pick up, The New York Times recently noted that JetBlue's market share, with 57 aircraft, is 2 percent, while American Airlines operates 730 planes and carries close to 20 percent of the domestic air travelers.

It's amusing to note that while the Big Six are looking for ways to cut the cost of customer amenities-beginning with meals-the low-cost carriers are looking to improve customer service by selling gourmet sandwiches and trendy cocktails, or by investing in new entertainment systems.

Where does Aloha stand vis `a vis the low-cost carriers and the industry giants? We're doing our own thing. Our business plan is unique to our company and our markets.

We begin with an extensive interisland system that provides frequent passenger service between Honolulu, Lihu'e, Kahului, Hilo and Kona throughout the day, and cargo service throughout the day and night. Aloha was founded to provide friendly, reliable interisland air transportation-and that is a commitment we intend to keep.

When we made the decision to expand to the U.S. mainland in 2000, we didn't want to compete with other Hawai'i-West Coast carriers on the routes most traveled. We chose Oakland instead of San Francisco, Orange County and Burbank instead of LAX. We weren't the first airline to capitalize on the convenience of secondary or regional airports. But we saw the advantages early on, and it seems the popularity of these airports is increasing.

We fly a single aircraft type, the Boeing 737, on interisland and long-distance routes. This provides cost savings and efficiencies in our operations. The technologically advanced 737-700 is also the right-size plane for the markets we serve.

When it came to deciding what type of service we were going to provide on the trans-Pacific routes, we designed the inflight product from the back of the plane to the front. By this, I mean we looked at what amenities we could offer in coach to provide a unique experience for everyone, before we looked at what to do in first class. That's how we arrived at the decision that headsets would always be free on Aloha, that there would be a welcome mai tai and that there would be a tasty meal and chocolate-chip cookies served with milk.

The choice of Master Chef Alan Wong as our Consulting Chef was an easy one. Raised in Hawai'i, Wong is the master of Hawaii Regional Cuisine, blending classic culinary techniques with the rich ethnic traditions of the Islands, using only high-quality ingredients. Translating his award-winning cooking style to the galley of an aircraft isn't easy and it isn't cheap. But we think it's worth it. Our passengers deserve it.

Thank you for flying with us.

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