It will soon be a year since Hawaiian Airlines made their massive move to the Amadeus reservation system. Despite the optimism for the future improvements associated with the well-liked industry-standard system, Hawaiian Airlines and its passengers continue to grapple with issues associated with the now not-so-recent upgrade. We had high hopes that by now, all of the massive problems the airline encountered in the upgrade would be behind us. But now we are less assured and can’t understand why, so long after the upgrade, Hawaiian remains so far behind other airlines flying to Hawaii in its customer-facing technologies.
This came to mind again yesterday when we encountered reservation issues ourselves and then reviewed what others had reported to us (below), as recently as this morning.
BOH editors received an email about an upcoming flight change. It was not a problem in and of itself, although the new flight time was now significantly earlier and no longer adequate to connect from another 10-hour flight. Going to both the Hawaiian app and website, we hoped to be able to select an alternate flight. It turns out that it wasn’t possible.
As a result, a lengthy call with the Hawaiian Airlines call center ensued. In the end, we ended up canceling the reservation and, after checking, quickly bought alternate tickets on Southwest while waiting for the Hawaiian agent to (hopefully) process the credit card refund. We received no confirmation of either the cancellation or the pending refund.
As an aside, the only other Hawaiian flight that would have worked came with an up-charge of $20. The SW tickets purchased, however, cost $20 each less than the prior tickets. So the difference was $40 per person.
The airline industry has moved to a functional, self-serve technology model.
We rather like that we can handle virtually everything online. As a result, we find that it is almost never necessary to call other Hawaii-centric airlines like Alaska, Delta, Southwest, and United, for example. Their systems can handle almost everything online without contacting customer service.
The aftermath of Hawaiian Airlines’ reservation system upgrade.
The transition from Sabre to Amadeus in April 2023, an industry-standard airline booking product, encountered substantial challenges, including a major technology breakdown. Unlike anything we’d seen or heard of previously, Hawaiian experienced an unexpected and complex technology meltdown during the upgrade, resulting in significant flight delays and disruptions to online bookings. Despite resolving most issues, the aftermath still continues to leave lingering problems even eight months later.
Numerous key features are to this day unavailable or pending resolution.
1. The ability to hold a reservation (for a fee) remains suspended. Their website says, “As of April 7, 2023, fare-hold reservations are temporarily unavailable as we upgrade our systems, which will allow us to provide an enhanced experience to our guests.” There is a link to more information, which leads to a 404 page not found error.
2. Reservation changes are not available online. The Hawaiian website says: “Please contact our Reservations Department. We will be implementing new, enhanced self-service flight changes on our website and app in the future.” That hasn’t been updated since the upgrade last April.
A recent comment today from Sasha said, “My big peeve is the inability of passengers to change flights without calling the airline and spending hours on hold. Please add this simple option.”
3. Cancellation of reservations is also not handled online. The website states, “Please call our Reservations Department. Cancellations cannot be done online.”
John A said about this: “And with this upgraded system, they absolutely 100% need the availability to cancel online or the app. The ridiculous amount of time spent and wasted on chat/text/calling is 2000. If they want to continue to compete with Southwest, which has an extremely polished and easy to use web/app experience, I’ll happily book there instead. Ease of use in 2023 is real.”
4. There is no “wallet” system where online credits can be stored and retried. Using prior travel credits online appears to not be implemented, requiring customers to contact the airline call center for assistance.
5. Hawaiian’s prior airfare calendar is gone. We switched to using Google Flights first in order to have a proper airfare calendar. Then navigate to the Hawaiian Airlines website.
Rose first alerted us when she said, “Have they done away with the fare calendar?” Then Brian S. commented about this “significant disappointment,” adding, “I almost always use the fare calendar to settle on my dates of travel, but now it has become tedious.”
6. The discontinuation of Companion Fare offers on the website, replaced by email-based discount codes, has also raised concerns, with some customers, including us, reporting never having received these previously promised offers.
Regular Lee expressed frustration, saying: “Companion Fare offers are no longer found on the website and will not be going forward. I did receive one of these emails, but the system wouldn’t let me use my companion fare discount even with the discount code from the email. Called 1-800 support no help. No one even answered the chat line. Filled out their complaint form and filed it online. I did get an answer in several days, but no help. I am really starting to wonder what the upper management is thinking. I assume they are not totally incompetent, but this is beyond puzzling!”
We look forward to hearing about your experiences! Mahalo.
My latest saga with HA Customer Service: Months ago when HA announced the first dates the 787 would begin service, I began regular checks of the website. On the day Hawaiian announced the first 787 flight from LAX – OGG I booked tickets to be on that first flight. Recently I went online to see how many seats were still available. Guess what? They have changed it back to the A330 without any announcement of a delay. I contact HA and was simply told that they do make changes to aircraft assignments. I understand, but when they made such a big deal about the first day and then to be silent about the change? Not a way to treat your Pualani Gold customers!
It’s a shame that Hawaiian seems to have abandoned its IT upgrade in its present, crippled state. Love the flight crews on Hawaiian. But the back office is a complete dumpster fire. Management seems to view its customers, including Pualani Gold and Platinum members, with utter contempt. They just don’t care.
On Nov. 28th our flight, #34 from OGG – LAX, had been cancelled. We were only about 10 minutes from the airport, being dropped off by our son. We were rebooked on a special flight, 1034, a few hours later. We almost always fly the A330 with extra comfort and I pay a premium for the exit row. The flight back to LA had us in row 46, the last row of 2 seats on the A321. When I checked in I asked the ticket agent about a refund. I was informed that I would have to call HA Customer Service. When I called I was handled rather rudely and told that refund requests had to be made online. When I asked the CS agent what part of the website, he simply said “Online” and hung up. Maybe he knew some big change was about to happen?
So now what??? I have had 50000 bonus points which I acquired about 6 years ago but still have not used. What becomes of my rewards now?
I am not happy as I loved Hawaiian airlines. Their flights, their food, etc. Alaska Airlines???? That is nowhere Hawaii.
I’ve been very impressed by Southwest’s reservation system too. Book on the wrong day? Easy correction in app or online. Need an earlier flight? Do it yourself.
Need to cancel a flight? Easy and credits don’t expire.
While I can’t always take them, they do get more of my business today than 5 years ago.
100% Frustration ! The App freezes; does not save info; basically, just does not function 99% of the time. The App and website Do Not link up which is equally frustrating ! Try to “check-in” to your flight…yeah, you will get a frozen App, a website that does not load, and if you are, by a miracle able to “check-in” to the flight through the website, the App will not update to that. On top of this test of wills…Hawaiian will randomly move your seats if you buy “Economy” tickets! This has happened my last 4 flights ! I checked in @24 hours (using glitchy app/website) and they still moved me! So, I tried to switch seats one hour before flight, and was able to get something decent; which I already had Before they switched me-Ugh !
I’m flying Hawaiian to LAS from HNL in May. Hopefully that res will still be there! Maybe this merger will result in a Hawaiian long haul non stop from ATL or DFW maybe even IAH. Just One of them Ima Beggin Ya! 😀
Best Regards
“The combined Alaska/Hawaiian will be based in Seattle.”- BOH
This is a buyout not a merger.
Priority will go to Alaska employees while Hawaiian employees will be gone.
Green, Bissen, and Pelletier have not testified about the Lahaina fire deaths and now HA is doomed. Time for answers and accountability.
Our biggest problem with the system for our last trip, which we completed yesterday, was that every time we had a time change, and there were several, the system also rearranged our seat assignments. In one instance it put our 15 year old grandson in row 33, instead of the extra comfort seat we booked in row 14 with the rest of us. This happened for both outgoing and return, and required several phone calls to fix.
IMO, BOH’s article that just came out today regarding Alaska Airlines’ acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines is probably the best thing that could happen to HA. May Alaska be able to fix some of HA’s issues that HA hasn’t been able to. I’m fortunate that I can fly out of Phoenix directly to Honolulu on HA, but, after reading about all the issues that have cropped up since I last visited in 2017, I’ve been nearly ready to take on extra hours and make that extra stopover in Seattle just so I could fly Alaska.
If Alaska can take over HA’s Phoenix slot, that would a positive IMO.
It depends on what, if anything, Alaska will end up keeping from Hawaiian. If anything. (Remember how quickly Virgin America disappeared.) This might be remembered in aviation history as a sad day for Hawaii based aviation. I am not saying this lightly, as I used to be a weekly frequent flyer of both brands and really liked both, but for very different reasons. Alaska simply doesn‘t have a good track record in brand preservation.
Alaska’s message announcing the “merger” (it’s really an acquisition) says that they will keep the Hawaiian brand. We will see how long that lasts. I’m pretty sure that many of Hawaiian’s routes, on the other hand, will remain since I think that’s one of the things that Alaska was after in the first place.
Most recently the HA website kept saying I booked through a foreign country so it wouldn’t let me view my reservation. Numerous calls got no results. It’s like HA has just given up pending the merger. If approved, HA as we once knew it will be gone, along with Hawaiian jobs and Aloha.
In October of 2023 I had reservations on Hawaiian Airlines for a flight to Maui September 8 but due to the fire (my timeshares are in Kaanapali) I was not able to stay at my resort. I contacted reservations and said I needed to cancel my reservation due to the fire. The agent said they could cancel but could not refund money. They gave me a two month window to rebook, but as the resort is was closed I could not make new reservation in that window. Am I out of luck or is there something I still do to get money back. With the timeshares I go every year.
Hi Richard.
Ticket validity should be one year from the date of purchase.
Aloha.
Many thanks again, BoH!
I just was checking-in six of us for a Kona-HNL flight tonight (12/3/23) and tried moving our random, scattered seat assignments online. Despite trying to enter our requests several times, the website advised that we must make changes in-person. Then I saw your timely email newsletter headline on this topic!
By the way, we’re all here now because you reported airfare specials in September.
¡Mucho Mahalo!
Hi Rob.
Thanks so much for letting us know. We hope you had a great time on the Big Island.
Aloha.
Tickets on 8/6/23 Hawaiian, HNL to Haneda, operated by JAL. 24 hours prior, try to check in. Can’t, likely due to international flight. Reservation on Hawaiian website now shows travel date 1/1/00. Call Hawaiian customer service, they say I cancelled flight 3 days before & want money to rebook. Nope. Hang up, call same customer service number after 7am. Flight confirmed. Online still shows goofy date. Very stressful hours until flight which was fine. Filled out Hawaiian complaint in detail, including screen shots on 8/6/23. No response yet after almost 4 months.
Great summary. I have the exact same experience with HA IT. Unfortunately, as a lifelong enterprise IT dev manager who used to work on such systems, I don’t see an easy way out. Amadeus is just one layer of a much larger patchwork of legacy IT apps from all kinds of vendors, old and new. These apps need to work in concert to present a functional web experience. Updating that patchwork is a massive undertaking.
Sadly, all your comments are correct. I can’t understand why they won’t reinstate the “HOLD” option, nor the fare calendar. Those two things were invaluable.
Fortunately, I have had good results…so far…getting refunds or credits, tho both took multiple, lengthy phone calls.
A Hawaiian representative said that she would have to charge me $29 per person on a flight I was rebooking because the taxes on the rebooked flight were higher than the taxes were on the flight I cancelled. Huh? My flight credit (Hawaiian does not refund your money) was more than the price of the new tickets. I would already be losing the difference between the two flights because Hawaiian does not refund your money. I asked to speak to a supervisor. After putting me on hold, the rep came back on to tell me that the supervisor gave the approval to refund my money (gasp!). I was then able to book new tickets. How often has Hawaiian overcharged customers this way???
We have been unable to use the HGEA affiliate code for a 5% discount on roundtrip flights to the US mainland and on international flights. I contacted the union and Hawaiian Airlines, after not getting the discount on numerous flights. Neither have been able to resolve this issue.
I hope they get this fixed. We fly from Lihue to Honolulu to Phoenix and it usually works well. Only two “day flight” choices for us. That said, one time they cancelled our flight from Lihue to Honolulu the day before and my cell phone battery ran out I was on hold so long to get on another flight. Another time they cancelled a flight and put me on a flight with an 8-hour layover, to get a shorter layover I was charged even though it was their change. I do like the airline, but they really need to get this fixed.
They are horrible at web tech. Someone needs to be replaced.
i have never been able to access the free companion airfare offer. i also have always used the monthly calendar to decide what day to travel on. i have recently stopped using the HA credit card so that i can get air miles with a carrier i can contact easily.
I’d think about changing credit cards, too, since Barclays is rather confusing about many card benefits. Besides Hawaiian, I have the American Airlines credit card from Barclays, which also makes its companion airfare difficult to use and requires lengthy calls for reservations (e.g., cannot be booked or changed online).
Even Alaska Airlines has increased requirements for companion fares.
All the extra credit card fees seem *not* to be used for customer service!
I think Southwest’s lower fares have forced HA into a cost cutting
mode of operating which is like a slow moving train wreck headed downhill! All of the frustrating issues that other users have posted
about ends up saving HA money in the short term. For example,
when I couldn’t use my companion fare discount that saved HA $100.
In the long term, their reputation suffers and they end up losing
repeat customers.
That’s frequently the result when an airline tries to take things in house and attempts to be a software dev shop, rather than focusing on their core business. It is possible, but you need to staff appropriately from the top down and not forgo user research.
From what I have read, they don’t have the ability to handle these problems in house. They outsourced the work to India in order to save money. The result, Chaos!
Sadly, I will continue with United air lines nonstop to, and from Newark.
I have had an unpleasant dispute over a mileage award ticket. Even though I sent them a screenshot of the award I booked they continued to charge me too many miles. Until your report I forgot about it therefore, it means I gave up.
There is another issue with their reservation system using their website; not sure if it’s a problem on the app. It’s happened to me twice. A few weeks ago I “purchased” an interisland flight and was issued a confirmation code even though the website said there was an issue with the reservation. You need to be aware that if you don’t get an email confirmation, you never actually booked a flight even if you received the code upon “booking”. Luckily I’m a proactive person and always follow up. Would have been really bad if I showed up to find out I didn’t have a seat.
Aloha, I am concerned since we have a lot of HA miles. I am hoping matters get ironed out soon. Your publication is keeping us informed. Keep it up.
Mahalo
Hi Marilyn.
Thank you! We appreciate all of your help and comments now spanning more than twelve years.
Aloha.
And they wonder why they are loosing money?
No wonder I receive almost daily emails to make a non-refundable “bid” for upgrading my airfare! The webpage for entering my credit card details loads quite quickly.
Has anyone found this “deal” worthwhile? (Example: An extra $450 is the minimum offer that might be accepted for my upcoming HNL-SAN Diego flight.)
Hi Rob.
We’ve tried but it has never worked for us. Also the minimum amount can be daunting. It was a popular idea when it started but it isn’t clear if that’s still the case. Let’s see what others report.
Aloha.
Everything in Hawaii seems to take time. How long will it take HA to clean up their act?
Definitely bring back the useful calendar!
As Pualani members, we were able to see what rewards or certificates we had online – now we have to call reservations to find out what we have been awarded. Calling reservations is always my last resort.
You guys spend a lot of time promoting (my opinion) airlines that don’t care about their customers, only the almighty dollar!!
Tried to check in online for a flight tomorrow sais I had to check in at a kiosk at the airport. Sad
Yes this year has had many challenges. How much longer are we going to have to suffer through this.
I am thinking that HA is having money issues. How else can you explain the website issues we have been having for most of this year. They must have chosen a not ready for primetime web design company.
They really do not seem to care about giving us the answers we are looking for.
I do Not have trouble when I do have to contact the call center. The Pualani Elite line answers very quickly, but I or anyone else should be able to do this online.
I am hoping that you (the editors) can get to the bottom of this website meltdown.
Thanks, gentleman for the article.
Another reason we fly United or Delta! LAX terminal is still the major negative.
Re: Hawaiian Airlines
I also had to make a flight change 2 days ago. Went to the website like normal, only to realize now we had to call. That took an incredibly long time even though the customer care person answered right away. Then he quoted me $9 to change the fare, and when he went to complete the change, he told me it was $138, that he had made a mistake.
I said I would think about it. I called back got a new person and only had to pay $9. Such a pain for no reason.