Hawaiian Airlines to get $650M in federal aid to continue operating

Hawaiian Airlines has parked most of its fleet amid the pandemic shutdown.
Hawaiian Airlines has parked most of its fleet amid the pandemic shutdown.(Hawaiian Airlines)
Published: Apr. 20, 2020 at 4:23 PM HST|Updated: Apr. 20, 2020 at 4:25 PM HST
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HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Hawaiian Airlines says it’s getting more than $650 million in federal aid to keep operating.

CEO Peter Ingram told a state legislative committee that federal authorities have approved $290 million in grants and loans to cover its payroll, and a low interest loan of $364 million for operations.

Regulators will also not require Hawaiian to add more flights to the mainland.

“Our exemptions were granted so that prevents us from having to immediately return a lot of service that would largely be empty airplanes in any event right now,” Ingram said.

He said the money will keep Hawaiian flying for the short-term as the airline burns through $4 million a day in operating costs while much of its fleet is grounded.

Besides 17 daily inter-island flights, the carrier will maintain two daily round-trips to California, which are mostly bringing cargo to Hawaii.

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