Hawaiian Airlines’ ability to fly internationally no longer belongs to Hawaiian. It now belongs to Alaska. The Department of Transportation just handed over Hawaiian’s most prized route authorities, codeshare approvals, and international flying rights to Alaska Air Group with no objections and barely a ripple in the travel world.
For Hawaii travelers and frequent flyers, this signals a deeper shift in power—one that will shape which routes survive, where flights originate, and how Hawaii fits into global air service.
What’s being preserved is a brand. What’s being transferred is control.
DOT quietly gives Alaska the upper hand.
On July 14, the U.S. Department of Transportation formally approved Alaska Air Group’s request to take over Hawaiian Airlines’ certificates and international economic authorities. These include the approvals Hawaiian spent years acquiring, like flights to Tokyo Haneda, Seoul Incheon, Papeete, and codeshare relationships with airlines across Asia and the Pacific.
This wasn’t a routine formality. It’s a key step that gives Alaska regulatory command over how and where those routes are used. Even though Hawaiian’s name is still on the side of the plane, the authority to fly to those destinations now resides in Seattle.
Competitors, government entities, or tourism officials filed no objections. Unless blocked by executive order in the next 60 days, which is highly unlikely, this transfer is permanent.
What this means for where Hawaii fits.
Before the merger, Hawaiian’s international service was focused on Hawaii as the hub, bringing travelers from Japan, Korea, Australia, and beyond directly to the islands. With this new certificate transfer, Alaska can now decide whether to preserve that model or replace it with a West Coast-centric approach.
We’ve already seen hints. In 2024, Alaska announced a Seattle–Tokyo route using a Hawaiian Dreamliner. Flights from Seattle to Seoul are set to launch this fall. Rome joins the network next spring. All of those were made possible by aircraft and authority acquired through the Hawaiian merger, but none of them operate from Honolulu or Maui.
This certificate shift allows Alaska to legally use Hawaiian’s rights from wherever it chooses, as long as the country-pair agreement allows. There’s no language in the DOT order that says those flights must originate in Hawaii.
Codeshare and alliance moves now favor Alaska.
Hawaiian’s existing codeshare partners include Japan Airlines, China Airlines, Korean Air, Philippine Airlines, Virgin Australia, and others. Some of those overlap or compete with Alaska’s existing codeshares and its participation in the oneworld alliance.
Now that Alaska Air Group holds the authority, it also controls the framework around those partner approvals. There’s every reason to believe the codeshare landscape will tilt toward what benefits Alaska’s broader strategy—one that increasingly revolves around funneling international traffic through Seattle and Los Angeles, not Honolulu.
International visitors may have fewer Hawaii options.
For visitors from Asia or the South Pacific looking to fly directly to Hawaii, the transfer introduces new risk since Alaska has no historic ties to these places. If routes underperform financially, the pressure will mount to cut or relocate them.
Even if the flight still exists, the experience could change. An aircraft painted with a plumeria on the tail may still operate the route. Still, decisions about schedules, codeshare seats, and pricing may come from an Alaska executive office, rather than from the airline Hawaii built over nine decades.
This isn’t about branding—it’s about power.
Alaska continues to say it will preserve the Hawaiian Airlines brand, especially for interisland and Hawaii-origin flights. But what just happened at the DOT proves something bigger: even while Hawaiian’s name remains, its strategic authority has already shifted north.
As we explored in our “global turf war in the skies, Alaska used the Hawaiian merger to gain aircraft capable of long-haul international service. It lacked those before. Now, it also has regulatory rights. In one transaction, Alaska leapfrogged into global relevance by utilizing the tools Hawaiian had spent years building.
The long game points away from the islands.
With Alaska’s Dreamliners now launching global flights from Seattle, the implications for Hawaii travelers are clear. New international service is unlikely to flow from the islands if those assets can earn more flying from the mainland.
There’s no legal requirement that says Tokyo–Honolulu must stay on the map. The route rights could just as easily become Tokyo–Seattle. In the short term, Alaska may leave many Hawaii routes untouched to avoid backlash. But over time, economics will win.
That puts Honolulu’s role as a global air gateway under real pressure. It’s not just about tourism anymore—it’s about where the airline sees opportunity.
For frequent flyers, more signs of consolidation.
This DOT action also directly ties to the developments with loyalty programs. With Alaska taking over international flying rights, and HawaiianMiles already scheduled to sunset, travelers should expect redemption access and partner booking rules to evolve quickly.
Alaska’s Mileage Plan may offer broader reach overall, but the end of HawaiianMiles eliminates a system that was tailored specifically for Hawaii travelers. Award availability, routing priorities, and international upgrades will reflect Alaska’s larger strategic goals—ones that may not always align with what long-time Hawaiian loyalists expect.
A major milestone without fanfare.
There were no balloons, no statements from Hawaii tourism, and no press conference with the governor. This was one of the most significant events in Hawaiian Airlines’ history, and it passed almost entirely unrecognized in the islands.
But for Beat of Hawaii readers who’ve followed every chapter of this merger, it’s a milestone we expected. From the reassignment of widebodies to the rollout of new international service from the mainland, the signs have been clear.
This certificate transfer confirms what was already underway: the era of Hawaiian Airlines as an independent global carrier is over. Alaska now holds the wheel. The only question left is how far it plans to steer away.
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It’s unfortunate that the airlines goal is monopolies and max profit no matter who’s tows they step on. We come to Maui every year and we’re willing to pay a little more to fly Hawaiian. We’ve flown other airlines but nothing compares to Hawaiian Airlines. Profit trumps everything. We are reevaluating our travels to Hawaii due to this fiasco called merger. Air fares are out of sight. After 11 years of an annual trip to maui we will make a desion. Who loses? Maui and tourism. Too bad the greedy owners of the airlines don’t care. Aloha Maui!
Just found out from a friend who works at Hawaiian. They will be stopping direct international flights from Honolulu to Seoul by November this year. I have flights already booked for December 2025 and March 2026. Not sure if they will reroute me on another airline(hoping it will be Korean airlines) or just refund my money….
This looks real Les. You might want to pick out an itinerary that you hope happens and give them a call now and see what your options are, especially for December.
Korean Air is a partner. Maybe, in time, these get code shared?
Let’s face it! Hawaiian Air has been bought out by Alaska and therefore, it has really no say in how, where, and when they operate. I’m sure a lot of loyal Hawaiian customers are confused and upset over the buyout, but groveling and getting upset won’t change anything. Nothing ever stays the same and I’m just hoping Alaska adopts or continues some of the culture that Hawaiian created, but don’t expect much. I’ve already experienced some negative experiences, but have expected that it is part of the change.
You have options, if you feel adamant on the changes but not traveling is certainly isn’t one of them! Live Aloha!
Hū! Aloha to our beloved Pualani! I dearly hope she doesn’t end up having to wear a fur parka!
It would behoove Alaska to continue using Honolulu as a hub for the international flights. Hawaiian planes could also depart from a “newly created” hub in Anchorage. When I leave home from Alaska almost every flight on Alaska Airlines goes through Seattle, and SeaTac airport is a true cluster muck of incredibly too many people. If your flight lands at SeaTac early, SeaTac will have the plane driving around the tarmac till your reserved spot opens up. The airport is so bogged down with planes & people there is no room for plan B. I hope the powers that be will think long and hard about this. Having two or three hubs is much better than filtering every customer through Seattle.
No it isn’t. The best way to run a hub it to put as many flights in it at the same time as is possible. That maximizes connection opportunities and maximizes load factors.
Obviously, there can be operational issues and Sea-Tac is possibly the most challenging hub in that regard outside of London Heathrow, but Alaska Airlines has been dealing with the issues of Sea-Tac for some time and I’m confident they have a plan.
There is no reason today for planes going across the Pacific to stop in Honolulu. They have plenty of range to go nonstop and they don’t need to collect passengers in a HNL hub to get a profitable load to Asia.
Alaska Airlines home base is Seattle. Passengers and cargo can connect to Seattle from 120 or so locations PLUS codeshare partner origination points.
No other Alaska hub has so many possible connections. Not even close for Honolulu, Portland, San Francisco, Los Anngeles, San Diego, etc.
Alaska will continue to max out Seattle becaue this is its most efficient point.
As a passenger if you do not like flying through Seattle, there are a couple flights thru Portland with some connections or you can fly another carrier and do and do the same though Minneapolis or San Francisco on United. Your choice how you program your flights
I hope for a great future for Hawaiian and Alaska. I do wish for more exciting international flights from Honolulu and Anchorage. Direct flights to Brisbane, Auckland, and Manila, would be a great start. I’m not looking forward to laying over anywhere on the West Coast!
since the merger , the HA direct flight from LAX to KOA , that I always booked has been cancelled., Alaska now has a direct (LAX to KOA) .
I never took Alaska Airlines. Is it dependable for flights to Hawaii.
Amazed first at the way this article comes across as doomsday for Hawaii. Its just big business.
But I am also amazed at anyone who is gullible enough not see to what Alaska Airlines is doing. They want to be Delta or United level of operations.
That is where they are making a mistake. They think they can make Seatlle a worldwide hub.
They only bought Hawaiian to get access to large planes quickly.
Problem is they will never be Delta etc with a hub in Seattle. The Asia market is not flying all the way to Seattle when it can go to HNL. Or go to LAX or SF to connect.
They are more importantly eliminating the Hawaiian Islands as nothing but another tourist route.
Completely discounting the hub of Honolulu which they could of controlled for all of Asia Australia etc.But their ownership
is deadset on Seattle.
Stupid move. Time will prove that.
Greed without contemplating the market will cost them long term.
The reality is Hawaiian is a failed model.
Hawaiian, outside of 10 or 12 domestic routes, had no domestic feeder operation for flights to Asia. This is the biggest problem with the Hawaiian model. There was no partner airline available for that either. Several years ago Hawaiian tried to code share with Jet Blue, but this never amounted to much, and in the end, Jet Blue has largely pulled out of the west coast altogether.
Seattle is closer to 90% of the world’s population than SFO and LAX. You are right that people that fly out of LAX and SFO probably won’t fly thru Seattle, but the rest of the continental USA will. Alaska serves over 100 cities from Seattle. Logically this is a no brainer. In addition, SeaTac serves more passengers than SFO. Further, LAX is a mess, and while large, no single airline dominates LAX and offers complete service. Again, Seattle is a more optimal location for a world hub.
Not liking the changes threaten even within the USA. Alaska Airlines was always the most expensive. Hopefully a more reasonable partner will be added to the mix.
If Alaskan changes Asian flights to Seattle instead of Honolulu, wouldn’t they lose a lot of customers? What does Seattle have to offer for visitors from Asia who typically stay 2 -4 weeks? And why would visitors from Asia want to fly about 5 hours longer to go to Seattle, and then have to take Another 5 hour flight to get to Hawaii? There are other airlines, who do fly nonstop to Honolulu:
All Nippon Airways
Asiana Airlines
Japan Airlines
Korean Air
Philippine Airlines
Zipair Tokyo
No, Alaska will gain customers.
Alaska serves over 100 airports across the USA from Seattle. All of those go into Seattle and can change in one stop.
Hawaiian served 10 or 12 domestic locations from Honolulu. Sure. Good bet a lot of traffic from Honolulu looks to a foreign carrier to fly to Asia.
So these flights lose Honolulu customers and gain 100 other connecting airports. So it is a net win.
As a loyal Hawaiian Airlines customer, I’m not thrilled at the buyout, but without it, HA would have disappeared. I’ve been using up my mileage points, since I don’t know if I’ll be flying Alaskan. I have to take 2 or 3 RT flights cross country annually. But being a wheelchair passenger, I fly nonstop. If Alaskan stops servicing the East Coast from Honolulu, I’ll have to fly Delta or whoever does fly nonstop.
The airlines’ names are:
Alaska Airlines (Not Alaskan!)
Hawaiian Airlines
Mahalo
I do not need nonstop but liked it to Boston. Was even a reasonable price. Hear that is going away.
Yes it Was a reasonable price… But just since the beginning of June my BOS/HNL flight has gone up by over $125 one way for economy. Not complaining, it hasn’t gone up much in years.
Hawaiian’s certificate was not transferred to Alaska Airlines. It was transferred to the Alaska Airlines Group, the holding company that owns Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, and Horizon Airlines. AAG can now assign any of the 3 carriers under it to operate a given route.
Hawaiian Airlines died in 2019, the last year it made a profit. It’s just that nobody claimed the body until 2024 when Alaska Air Group bought the carcass and started rendering it to make it into something completely different, something that doesn’t burn through stockholders’ investments.
The reality is one airline is being created and the employees will all be merged together. Alaska is that airline and they have wisely, so far, indicated they will keep the Hawaiian Air brand alive. Obviously that gives them a competitive edge in the Pacific, including Asia. They would be smart if they branded all their International flying “Hawaiian”.
Just like Asia to SEA, Europe to SEA would sell better as “Hawaiian” than “Alaska” would. It will ultimately be one airline, but “Hawaiian” painted on the airplane would sell better anywhere they want to expand to. Sadly, it’s not going to happen.
re: Alaska Takeover – Look for AS to takeover inter-island flying using Horizon Air turboprops and new Airbus A-220-300 jets. Just a matter of time as the 717 fleet is old and Horizon pilots make far less than Hawaiian pilots. Then maybe buy more A-321 jets for Hawaiian to use to the West Coast while Alaska takes all widebodies.
Horizon doesn’t have any turboprops and they wouldn’t be used on interisland routes even if they did. The cargo business would collapse.
Just because the A220 is relatively small, doesn’t mean its appropriate for interisland service. It is not designed for the 100 mile distance from HNL to OGG.
In any case, A220 orders are backlogged for years.
It’s called operational control. This is a necessary step. It’s not a surprise. You can’t have 1 company and two separate operating certificates and route authorities..
It is Alaska Airlines flying to those destinations, thus eventually it has to all be controlled by Alaska Airlines. Like it or not technically there is no “Hawaiian” any longer, Hawaiian only exists in branding and paint.
When you book a ticket the money goes to Alaskan. Soon enough the company will all be called Alaska Airlines.
Yes indeed, this article correctly indicates that the era of Hawaiian Airlines as an independent global carrier is definitely over!
The bean counters in Seattle will call all the shots from now on, and it will all be a matter of economics and the bottom line. Something tells me that the politicians in Honolulu probably don’t even care, or even understand the implications of what has happened! Their only concern is to reduce tourist traffic to the islands. Well guess what, you are going to see what that looks like a lot sooner than later.
Good luck!
You’re darn tootin’ the “bean counters” in Seattle will be the ones making the decisions. That’s because the “bean counters” in HNL lost almost a billion dollars since 2019.
No doubt about that!
It seems the move away from Hawai’i is a smart one. Seems the locals and government want to keep taxing away at the tourists, charge them insane amounts for a hotel room, and keep taking long term rentals off the market & making them AirBnBs.
No wonder Hawaiian Airlines was in bankruptcy… the state doesn’t want tourists anymore!
At least Alaska Airlines can allocate the assets (planes, people) to more profitable areas and fly to states & countries that actually Want tourists.
This is in many ways a non-story. The consolidation of the operating certificate is standard in every airline merger. This one is no different. It’s simply a matter of how The Alaska Air Group plans on moving forward.
Alaska Air Group = Alaska Airlines + Horizon + Hawaiian Airlines.
One of the inherent problems Hawaiian faced as an independent carrier was its sole reliance on travel to/from Hawaii. Any downturn in demand hit its bottom line, as it had no other revenue streams to rely on. It’s one of the many reasons Hawaiian was headed towards bankruptcy prior to the merger.
I expect the Alaska Air Group will deploy resources where they will receive the best return on investment. To think otherwise would be extremely naive.
Without the Alaska purchase, Hawaiian would have very likely gone under. Everyone would have been unemployed. Miles would have been lost, and in most cases, money paid for tickets would have been lost.
Hawaiian Air is gone and never coming back, their employees will be weeded out over a period of time and Alaska employees will take over Hawaiian top jobs, Hawaii won’t be a hub but a destination for tourists to come visit.
There is no news here. We knew this was coming. HA was pau. Bankruptcy was imminent.
I have not been really impressed with what AS has been doing as of now.
They really do not have the route structure of Delta to be a major international player.
Only time will tell if they can become a player.
This change needed to happen since AS always said they’d get a single operating certificate. With the acquisition, it’s not like HA having route authority prevented AS from pulling the strings.
I fly from San Jose to Honolulu monthly. My airline of choice is Alaska. I the forward cabin, I can pre-order my meals. I usually have 5 choices. The flight departs at 7 AM. Hawaiian has a flight departing at the same time. Alaska dropped their flight and I am now placed on Hawaiian. No food pre-orders on Hawaiian. I miss that. I also miss having a FA assigned to the forward cabin.