Update… inter-island service
Southwest Airlines exploring inter-island service in Hawaii expansion
10/26/2017
Dallas Business Journal OnlineWEB
Dallas-based Southwest Airlines is considering inter-island service as part of its Hawaiian expansion, but no final decisions have been made, CEO Gary Kelly said Thursday.
“Step one, of course, is getting from California to Hawaii,” Kelly said in a conference call with investors and media. “(Inter-island service) has been down our priority list, but we will have serious consideration of that.”
Even if low-cost carrier Southwest (NYSE: LUV) doesn't offer inter-island service initially, it will continuously re-evaluate it, Kelly said. No Federal Aviation Administration regulations or other factors prohibit Southwest from offering it, he said.
The carrier has built its business strategy on short-haul flights and quick turnaround times, and inter-island service lends itself to that business model.
On another topic, flights departing late at night and arriving early the next morning probably won't be included in the initial service from the mainland to Hawaii, but may be added later, Kelly also said in the conference call.
“We don't really desire to fly red-eyes right now,” he said. “For our style of operation, it would complicate things. I'm assuming at some point, we would want that capability… Whether we feel strongly that there is a revenue benefit from having the red-eyes, I don't think we can judge that yet.”
Southwest announced Oct. 11 that it will launch service to Hawaii. Tickets go on sale in 2018. Southwest plans to announce more details later about ticket prices and when and where specifically in Hawaii the airline will fly.
But before flights start to Hawaii, Southwest must get approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for Extended Twin Operations, known in the airline industry as ETOPs. The certification is a regulatory requirement to operate over the water between the mainland and the Hawaiian islands.
The ETOPs approval process can take a year or more and includes special training for flight crews and additional equipment for the aircraft.
On Wednesday, Bret Oestreich, national director of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, said the union will file for a cease and desist order that will “stop Southwest dead in its tracks” in regard to the Hawaii flights. AMFA claims that Southwest's recently announced plan to outsource ETOPS work related to its Hawaiian operations is a violation of the airline's contract with the union.
Airline management said in the conference call today that that the planned flights to Hawaii do not violate the current collective bargaining agreement