The carrier, once Hawaii’s largest private employer, is starting to call back workers.
Losing more than $1 million a day might seem like bad news for most companies, but for Hawaiian Airlines those losses are signs of a positive trend: good enough that the airline is starting to call back workers.
During an interview Friday on the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s “Spotlight” program on Facebook, the airline’s chief executive, Peter Ingram, said the carrier’s negative cash flow of $1.3 million to $1.5 million per day compares to losses of $4.5 million per day during the height of the pandemic. The company has “more than enough” cash to make it through the pandemic, he said.
Demand from passengers has rebounded significantly, Ingram said, to a point where planes are flying 60% to 70% full, even with more planes flying.
The carrier also has opened new routes: to Austin, Texas, and Orlando, Florida. And with more customers, Hawaiian is calling back workers who were on voluntary leave, including pilots, flight attendants and airport workers, Ingram said.
“We’re feeling a lot more positive,” he said. “There’s a wind in our sails.”
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