The transition is no longer theoretical and is moving fast. Hawaiian Airlines new owner, Alaska Air Group, just named its Honolulu leadership team to oversee operations across both Alaska and Hawaiian brands. That move puts Alaska fully in control of Hawaii’s most important airline base even before any more formal changes including single operations have occurred. While executives continue to insist Hawaiian Airlines will remain distinct in perpetuity, this development shows who’s actually in charge going forward. And for travelers, the biggest questions now center on experience, identity, and whether anything will feel familiar or different the next time they fly to Hawaii.
Who’s now running operations in Hawaii.
At the top of the newly announced team is Jim Landers, Hawaiian’s current Senior Vice President of Technical Operations, who becomes Head of Hawaii Operations at Alaska. He will oversee engineering, maintenance, and safety across the combined network.
Other key appointments are also largely drawn from Hawaiian and Alaska’s leadership bench, including long-time Alaska Hawaii executive Daniel Chun, Jonathan Goo, and Alisa Onishi. Melodi Pieper, overseeing HR across the islands, also joins the team. A Head of Hawaii Guest Operations is expected to be named sometime later this fall.
That continuity may sound reassuring. For now, the reporting structure leads directly to Joe Sprague, a long-time Alaska executive who is acting as president of Hawaiian Airlines during this transition, and the person tasked with integrating the two airlines. That means some long-serving Hawaii veterans and some Alaska key execs will together be executing Alaska’s playbook. The question becomes whether this will preserve what travelers have come to expect from Hawaiian or whether it’s just a gentler version of a more traditional takeover. For example, will Hawaii guest operations be different somehow than Alaska’s overall guest operations.
Why this team matters to travelers.
This isn’t just some internal reshuffling. These are the people who decide how flights to and from Hawaii are staffed, how schedules are built, how aircraft are maintained, how customers are managed, and to some degree which routes stay or disappear. As the airlines move toward a single operating certificate and one loyalty program this fall, decisions made next will shape every interisland connection and every delay that gets handled or not.
It also signals that Alaska isn’t just flying to Hawaii. It wants to run Hawaii travel from the inside. That might bring added efficiency. It might bring investment. But it could just as easily bring more mainland thinking to a system that once was uniquely Hawaiian.
What this signals about brand identity.
This is a work in process with a whole lot more to be revealed over the next few months. We’ve already seen some tensions surface, as described in our coverage of pilot and staff reactions. Employees have voiced concerns about transparency and more as the push to integrate labor forces intensifies. It isn’t clear if the new leadership rollout will ease such skepticism. Alaska has emphasized that Hawaiian’s 95-year legacy and commitment to Hawaii will remain central, but some travelers remain unconvinced.
How Honolulu Airport Operations Are Already Shifting.
With more than 180 daily flights now falling under this Honolulu-based team, more changes may start showing up soon. That could include altered gate assignments, staffing shifts at check-in, and adjustments to customer service based on Alaska’s systems.
Several key routes once operated with widebody aircraft have quietly moved to single-aisle planes. Meanwhile, Hawaiian’s Dreamliners are being positioned primarily to support Alaska’s international expansion plans rather than bolster Hawaii. These decisions suggest deeper control is already in place. And with the loyalty program merger going live in October, there may be even less room left for business-as-usual.
What Frequent Hawaii Flyers Are Starting To Notice.
While the average visitor may not follow airline org charts like these, they’re definitely noticing the ripple effects. Readers have pointed out differences between the two airlines in food service, seat comfort, and even the tone of onboard announcements. One frequent interisland flyer named Tracy wrote, I used to know what I was getting on Hawaiian. Lately, it isn’t as clear.
That kind of uncertainty is what Alaska’s new Honolulu team is now expected to resolve. But whether they do it in a way that reflects Hawaiian’s identity or simply phases it out quietly is the question that could define the next years of Hawaii travel.
What happens next with the merger.
All eyes are now on the expected FAA single operating certificate this fall. That’s the trigger for full integration of systems, aircraft, and crew scheduling. The loyalty program merger will also happen this fall, with announcements expected by mid-August at the latest. And sometime in 2026, passengers will be moved onto one shared reservation platform. That’s when most of the final operational glue between the airlines will harden in place.
Until then, we’re in what looks like the final stage of Alaska’s progressing absorption of Hawaiian. With this new leadership team in place, it’s clear that whatever Hawaiian Airlines becomes next, the decisions are no longer being made independently. They’re being made from within, but not from the airline that built Hawaii’s aviation legacy. That was inevitable, and the time has arrived.
Have you noticed changes flying Hawaiian or Alaska in Hawaii? Tell us what’s different, or what still feels the same.
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