Aloha pioneers electronic flight plans

The airline is the first in the world to have pilots sign off on flight data using the Internet

Aloha Airlines has signed away its old flight plan system.

The Honolulu-based airline has become the first airline in the world to have its pilots sign off on flight plans electronically, eliminating its fax and paper system.

The pilots review, approve, sign and submit flight plans using DocuSign, a Web-based electronic signature service, the company said yesterday. The new process will save Aloha money and time, spokesman Stu Glauberman said, declining to disclose specifics.

With the eSignature service, Aloha receives a secure real-time record of the transaction that meets the Federal Aviation Administration's standards for archiving flight plans. The signatures are stored in a secure data center, according to Seattle-based DocuSign Inc.

Aloha started using the service, which allows pilots to log and change flight plans at any computer with Internet access, two months ago, said Lambert Jemley, vice president of marketing at DocuSign.

"We believe in tandem with Aloha that we are increasing their operation efficiency," Jemley said.

Operating expenses for Aloha have jumped this year. They rose 5.9 percent to $112.3 million from $106 million in the second quarter, which ended June 30, and 6.4 percent to $222.1 million for the first six months of 2007 from the year-earlier period, according to preliminary data released by the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics earlier this month.