Alaska Airlines & Hawaiian Takeover Completed

Alaska Airlines has formally revealed the completion of an acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines after much deliberation and one that overhauls the U.S. industry.

This is a landmark day in Alaska Airlines’ history. The esteemed carrier now takes Hawaiian Airlines under its wing to expand its presence domestically and internationally.

Despite the merger and now broader integration, Hawaiian Airlines will remain as is and will not lose the brand it has worked so hard to create.

Work is underway to secure the essential single operating certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The desire to acquire this will mean the two airlines will be able to merge and operate as a single airline that focuses on offering an integrated passenger operation while technically being separate in branding.

While the branding will stay the same, Alaska Airlines is plotting other integrations to streamline the booking and loyalty process, which will come later. No immediate changes will thus occur until approval can be granted in that regard.

Approval comes at a time when consolidation is a huge part of the industry, especially within the United States. In recent months, JetBlue and Spirit Airlines’ attempts to consolidate were rejected, following several other attempts that never eventuated.

Alaska Airlines believed its mission with Hawaiian Airlines differed from other failed attempts and thus thought it wouldn’t stand too much pushback in the overall approval process.

The airlines say that effective September 18, hard-earned miles across both loyalty programs will retain their full value, while Alaska lounge members and guests can enjoy lounge locations when also flying on Hawaiian.

Nothing significant, however, will change immediately as the two companies now will work together to find a way to input meaningful changes.

In the coming weeks, however, customers can expect to buy tickets for most Hawaiian Airlines flights on the Alaska Airlines website and vice versa. Furthermore, there’ll also be the opportunity to book international destinations to Japan and Australia.