Brenneman sees flights HILO >> In about four years, the number of flights of the new, combined Hawaiian and Aloha airline to mainland cities could double, said Greg Brenneman, chairman and chief executive of the new Aloha Holdings company during a trip to Hilo yesterday.
to mainland doubling
The head of the new
Aloha Holdings sees direct isle
service to 20 cities by 2006Rod Thompson
rthompson@starbulletin.comMore passenger flights means more cargo space, good news for the Hilo-area fruit and flower shippers Brenneman met with yesterday.
By 2006, the company is looking at possible direct flights to about 20 cities, including Sacramento and Phoenix, Brenneman said. No one flies there from Hawaii now because airlines fly from their hubs, and Honolulu is not a hub, he said.
In addition, Brenneman also said he wanted to expand flights to cities already served by the local airlines, such as San Diego.
Because passengers, rather than cargo, determine where planes go, new Big Island flights would probably go to Kona, Brenneman said.
Hilo shippers would have to truck their products to Kona for transshipment, but the costs would still be lower than their current practice of flying cargos to Honolulu for transshipment, he said.
Brenneman said he got a good reception from the 40 to 50 business people he met in Hilo yesterday. "They think there's a real opportunity," he said.
Brenneman assured the shippers that their current contracts with Hawaiian and Aloha, some of them long term, will be honored. After those contracts expire, any rate increases will be tied to inflation for five years, he said.
Paula Helfrich of the Hawaii Island Economic Development Board said more planes to cities like Sacramento will mean less transit time for perishable Big Island products.
Marnie Herkes of the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce said Brenneman's Big Island visit helped allay "uncomfortable" feelings about the merger.
