Carrier To Acquire A321neo Aircraft Beginning In 2017

Hawaiian Airlines pilots have ratified a tentative agreement reached earlier this month between the company and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) on new contract terms covering the operation of long-range, single-aisle aircraft the company plans to acquire to complement its current fleet of wide-body, twin-aisle aircraft serving Hawai'i from the U.S. West Coast.

On January 7, Hawaiian announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with airframe manufacturer Airbus to acquire 16 new A321neo aircraft between 2017 and 2020, with rights to purchase an additional nine aircraft. The company also announced that the acquisitions are contingent upon the signing of new agreements with its pilots' and flight attendants' unions covering operation of the new aircraft type.

Hawaiian is in talks with the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) about a similar agreement.

The A321neo fleet expansion is expected to generate roughly 1,000 additional jobs at Hawaiian. The long-range, single-aisle A321neo aircraft will complement Hawaiian's existing fleet of wide-body, twin-aisle Boeing B767 and Airbus A330 aircraft used for long-haul flying between Hawai'i and the U.S. West Coast. At 146-feet-long, the A321neo will seat approximately 190 passengers in a two-class configuration (First and Coach) and has a range of 3,650 nautical miles.

Terms of the agreement were not disclosed, however, the aircraft have a total list-price value of approximately $2.8 billion if all of the purchase rights are exercised.

"Everyone at Hawaiian wants us to keep our position as the market leader in service quality, cost efficiency and choice of destinations and ordering the A321neo will secure this legacy on routes between the U.S. West Coast and Hawai'i beyond the middle of this decade," said Mark Dunkerley, president and chief executive officer of Hawaiian Airlines.

(A320neo pictured in file photo)

FMI: www.hawaiianairlines.com, www.alpa.org