Keahi Tucker on KGMB9 called the news “;surreal.”; The news in question was that go! is working out a deal to try and re-brand itself as Aloha Airlines.

The dictionary defines “;surreal”; as something that has the “;intense, irrational reality of a dream.”; But what happened with Aloha Airlines felt more like a nightmare to those who lived the events leading up to its abrupt closure. And this news feels to many of them like a new chapter in that nightmare. I know. Many of the former Aloha Airlines employees have found employment at Mokulele Airlines, bringing with them their experience and their commitment to building new careers with our small but growing interisland carrier. The aloha spirit lives on through them and through our combined efforts to give the people of Hawaii more choice in how they connect to families, friends and business associates throughout the islands.

  Perhaps the people of Hawaii will exhibit their characteristic aloha and forgive Mesa for the predatory tactics that led to the loss of more than 2,000 jobs and brought anguish to so many families. Perhaps the people of Hawaii will respond, in these tough times, to whoever is offering the lowest fare. But as someone running a growing airline that has just brought new, luxury jet service at economy prices to the islands through its alliance with Republic Airways, I am betting the people of Hawaii will have no problem telling real aloha from pretend aloha. These islands have had lots of practice distinguishing the two.

It takes more than a re-branding exercise to reinvent go! as Aloha Airlines. It takes chutzpah. Real aloha springs from a deep and heartfelt respect for the people of these islands. It springs from being sensitive to the native culture and customs of Hawaii.

Real aloha requires us to consider the welfare of others, to act in a way that takes into account the good of the community even while trying to serve one's own interests.

You can't buy aloha, Mr. Ornstein. You either have it or you don't.

Mokulele Airlines has invested greatly to expand our services. We now connect many previously underserved points on the islands through our Cessna Caravan or Embraer E170 jet flights. We invested even as the economy has become more and more difficult, driven by the conviction that the people of Hawaii recognize and reward businesses that are grounded in local culture, that serve local interests and that take care of the needs of the people of Hawaii first. This week we also roll out a Mokulele Alii Rewards Program that offers several high value benefits.

  We are counting on the people of Hawaii to recognize genuine aloha when they see it. A former Aloha Airlines employee described Mesa's attempt to acquire the “;aloha”; brand as a “;slap in the face.”; We believe the people of Hawaii can distinguish between real aloha and a slap in the face. It is our hope that the people of Hawaii who have already begun to encounter familiar faces from Aloha Airlines at the Mokulele counters, gates and planes and at the refurbished former Aloha Airlines lounge that now serves as the Mokulele Alii Lounge will not reward this latest cynical business move from afar to acquire the priceless intangible of the Aloha Airlines heritage.

We are counting on the genuine aloha of the people of Hawaii to continue to support the homegrown, rational reality of Mokulele Airlines.