Hawaiian Airlines Leads Nation’s Carriers in Load Factor for February

Traffic Statistics Show Big Jump in Revenue Passenger Miles


HONOLULU, March 17, 2004 -- Hawaiian Airlines continued its industry-leading performance in February, topping all other U.S. airlines in the percentage of seats filled by posting an 82.7 percent Load Factor for scheduled systemwide operations.

Hawaiian today released its monthly traffic statistics for February (see attached chart), which also showed a major increase in year-over-year Revenue Passenger Miles (RPMs), along with growth in Available Seat Miles (ASMs), and number of passengers served.

According to traffic statistics compiled by industry publication Aviation Daily, Hawaiian finished ahead of all 29 Major, National, Regional and Low-Cost airlines reporting data for February. The top five carriers for Load Factor following Hawaiian were: JetBlue, 77.9 percent; Spirit, 75.9 percent; Northwest, 74.5 percent; and United, 73.2 percent. This was the second consecutive month that Hawaiian led the nation's carriers in load factor.

Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian's president and chief operating officer, commented, “Having the industry's highest Load Factor, while at the same time being the most punctual airline is a very special accomplishment. It reflects the high quality of our operation and the success of our entire workforce in attracting visitors to Hawaii on Hawaiian Airlines and taking care of them before, during, and after their flights.”

Hawaiian also has the nation's best on-time performance. Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Transportation reported that Hawaiian had the nation's best on-time performance for the third consecutive month.

For Hawaiian, the 82.7 percent Load Factor in February represented a year-over-year increase of 13.9 percentage points compared to 68.8 percent in February 2003. Year-to-date, Hawaiian's Load Factor is 81.4 percent, an increase of 12.7 percentage points from 68.7 percent in 2003.

Also of note to the company's success, Hawaiian recorded a 29 percent increase in February traffic (RPMs) compare to February 2003. For the first two months of 2004, traffic was up 25 percent from the same period a year before. Passengers in scheduled service increased 4.7 percent in February 2004 versus the prior February.

The increase in load factor was achieved while Hawaiian was also expanding capacity. ASMs in February 2004 increased 7.5 percent versus February 2003.

To view a PDF of operations table for February, click here.

About Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines, the nation's number one on-time carrier, is recognized as one of the best airlines in America. Business travelers recently surveyed byCondé Nast Traveler rated Hawaiian Airlines as having the best in-flight service and meals of any U.S. carrier. Hawaiian was recently ranked fourth best in the nation overall by Travel + Leisure.

Celebrating its 75th year of continuous service, Hawaiian Airlines is Hawaii's largest and longest-serving airline, and the second largest provider of passenger air service between Hawaii and the mainland U.S. Hawaiian offers nonstop service to Hawaii from more mainland U.S. gateways
than any other airline. Hawaiian also provides approximately 100 daily jet flights among the Hawaiian Islands, as well as service to American Samoa and Tahiti.

Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a subsidiary of Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (AMEX and PCX: HA). Since the appointment of a bankruptcy trustee on May 16, 2003, Hawaiian Holdings has had no involvement in the management of Hawaiian Airlines and has had limited access to information concerning the airline.

Additional information on Hawaiian Airlines is available at www.HawaiianAir.com.