HONOLULU, August 26, 2003 -- Two months after being the only Hawaii-based airline to rank among the top five U.S. airlines rated for service by readers of Travel + Leisure magazine, Hawaiian Airlines has been rated fourth best among all domestic carriers in the magazine's annual ‘World's Best Awards.'
Travel + Leisure published the results of its eighth annual ‘World's Best Awards' Readers' Survey 2003 in the August issue ranking the top domestic and international airlines, cruise lines and hotels.
The World's Best Awards was conducted by a questionnaire made available to Travel + Leisure subscribers during the first quarter of this year. Respondents were asked to rate airlines on five characteristics: cabin comfort, food, inflight service, customer service and value.
“To be rated so highly by a group as sophisticated as this is extremely gratifying,” said Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian's president and chief operating officer. “It's a credit to our employees, who really set Hawaiian apart as an airline.”
The top three domestic airlines ranked in order ahead of Hawaiian are Midwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Alaska Airlines, none of which flies to Hawaii.
In a separate Travel + Leisure readers' poll in June of this year, Hawaiian Airlines was rated the nation's fifth best airline in a measurement of service.
Founded in Honolulu 73 years ago, Hawaiian Airlines is Hawaii's longest-serving and largest airline. The nation's 12th largest carrier, it is the second-largest provider of passenger service between the West Coast and Hawaii and offers nonstop service to Hawaii from more mainland U.S. gateways (nine) than any other airline. Hawaiian also provides approximately 100 daily jet flights among the six Hawaiian Islands, as well as weekly service to American Samoa and Tahiti.
The company takes pride in its innovative programs that deliver on the promise, “Hawaii Starts Here.” In addition to being rated as the fourth best U.S. airline by Travel + Leisure, Hawaiian has earned numerous honors in recent years, including the 2001 Zagat Survey's award for Best Overall U.S. Airline in the Premier category, and the 2001 Diamond Award for In-Flight Service from Onboard Services magazine.
Additional information on Hawaiian Airlines, including previously issued company news releases, is available on the airline's Web site at www.HawaiianAir.com.