Hawaiian tries
to block ex-exec
in turf warA court filing claims the airline's
former marketing VP is working
for ATA despite a noncompete clause
Hawaiian Airlines has asked the federal Bankruptcy Court to stop its former marketing chief from doing the same work for competitor ATA, which is expanding its presence in the mainland-Hawaii passenger market.
Before he was fired in February after more than five years as Hawaiian's senior vice president of marketing and sales, John Happ signed an agreement that said he would not compete with Hawaiian for at least 18 months, Hawaiian says. But five months later, he was hired with the same title by ATA, the major subsidiary of Indianapolis-based ATA Airlines Inc.
Subsequently, ATA has boosted its Hawaii service, with the marketing directed by Happ.
That, says Hawaiian's bankruptcy trustee Joshua Gotbaum in the federal court action filed yesterday, was a violation of various agreements Happ made with Hawaiian before he left and at the time of his termination.
Happ, reached in Indiana, declined to comment and ATA officials could not be reached.
His name has figured in recent news statements about ATA's growing presence in the Hawaii market, although those announcements did not mention his Hawaiian Airlines background.
Hawaiian is seeking an injunction that would prevent Happ from working for ATA in any capacity where that airline competes with Hawaiian.
Happ, an experienced airline executive, took the executive position with Hawaiian in December 1997 and held it until he was "terminated" in February 2003, the legal filing says.
A press release issued by ATA on July 16, announcing Happ's appointment as senior vice president of marketing and sales, said Happ "oversees all revenue-related functions for ATA, including marketing, sales, reservations, distribution planning, network planning, pricing and revenue management, and customer loyalty programs."
Happ's role at Hawaiian gave him access to proprietary information about Hawaiian, such as the airline's relationships with major customers like ticket wholesalers, and his contracts don't allow him to use that for another airline, the legal filing said.
An Oct. 15 announcement that ATA will launch nonstop Seattle-Honolulu service Feb. 20, a service that competes directly with Hawaiian, was issued in Happ's name.
A week later, ATA announced daily New York-Honolulu service and an increase in its Los Angeles-Honolulu frequency.
ATA also flies to Hawaii from several U.S. west cities served by Hawaiian.
