Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Agree to Merge—What This Means for Travelers

04.12.2023 - 22:43 / afar.com / Spirit Airlines / Merrick Garland / Hawaiian Airlines / Airlines

Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines made a big announcement over the weekend—they entered into an agreement under which Alaska will purchase Hawaiian for $1.9 billion.

Under the proposed merger, the two distinct airline brands would be maintained (unlike when Alaska acquired Virgin America and dissolved the Virgin America name). And the airlines tout that the integration would result in an expanded network for passengers, including more service for Hawai‘i residents by tripling the number of destinations throughout North America that can be reached from the islands through direct and connecting flights. It would also result in more service between the West Coast and the Asia Pacific region by establishing Honolulu as a key hub for making international connections.

On the loyalty front, the deal would connect Alaska’s and Hawaiian’s frequent flier programs, including giving members of both programs access to more airport lounges throughout the world and the ability to earn and use miles through the oneworld Alliance—Alaska is a oneworld Alliance partner airline; Hawaiian is not. The oneworld Alliance includes American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Qantas, and Qatar Airways, among a few others.

However, the deal is still subject to regulatory approval, and it remains to be seen if the federal government will sign off.

Earlier this year, JetBlue Airways ended its three-year pact with American Airlines following a federal ruling that declared the union was anticompetitive. JetBlue said that it would instead focus on its bid to purchase Spirit Airlines, but the Justice Department has filed a civil antitrust lawsuit to block the Spirit acquisition claiming that “the merger of JetBlue and Spirit would result in higher fares and fewer choices for tens of millions of travelers, with the greatest impact felt by those who rely on what are known as ultra-low-cost carriers in order to fly,” according to a statement from Attorney General Merrick Garland.

But while Spirit airfares are considerably lower than those offered by competitors such as JetBlue, when it comes to Alaska and Hawaiian, their airfares are similar. For instance, the average one-way economy fare in September between the continental United States and Hawai‘i was $321, according to data provided by Cirium, an aviation analytics company. Cirium reports that Alaska and Hawaiian’s average one-way economy fares for the same route were $294 and $292, respectively. So, while their fares were slightly below the industry average, they were almost identical to each other.

The deal would, however, inevitably reduce the amount of competition on flights to the islands. Hawaiian currently flies the highest percentage of seats—24