Even with the recent news of the U.S. and Iran reaching an initial deal to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, concerns of oil and fuel costs continue to dominate headlines.
Energy cost concerns are especially acute here in Hawaiʻi, where flying is the primary option for people and products to reach the islands.
To shed light on how rising energy costs are impacting the price of plane tickets, HPR spoke with Diana Birkett Rakow, CEO of Hawaiian Airlines.
She discussed how Alaska Air Group is navigating the energy crisis as it works toward integrating Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines.
Interview Highlights
On the jet fuel 'crisis'
DIANA BIRKETT RAKOW: We are in, frankly, a crisis around jet fuel prices. They are about double what they were prior to the Iran war. And we're navigating that. What that means for us is that, based on the amount of fuel that we burn, every dollar increase over the prior, sort of, fairly steady price of fuel is about $100 million a month in additional cost. And right now we're running about $2 a gallon above pre-war prices, so that's about $200 million extra a month.
We have increased our fares, sort of here and there, in order to offset some of that cost increase, but I will tell you, we're not recouping the full cost of increased fuel, so we're trying to balance that. The way that we have been thinking about it from the perspective of local travelers here in Hawaiʻi, both for neighbor island and for the continent, is the value of the Huakaʻi program. So the Huakaʻi program is available. It's a part of our loyalty program, Huakaʻi by Hawaiian, and it's available for all kamaʻāina, all Hawaiʻi residents, to sign up.
On supporting Molokaʻi travel
RAKOW: We're very committed to neighbor island travel, as you know, with very high frequency and service, and continuing that. We can't serve Molokaʻi with the aircraft that we have due to the short runway. And so what we do focus on is, how do we support the flying that our partners at Mokulele do? How do we make sure that they are as reliable in their operations as possible? And I know they've been working to improve those operations significantly, and we encourage that progress, and we'll continue to work with them to make sure that it continues.
On preserving Hawaiian Airlines uniforms and ending free in-flight meals
RAKOW: What that means is that the Hawaiian Airlines brand is here to stay… and that it will have a distinct and separate set of onboard service elements, uniform, etc., from the Alaska Airlines brand. … So, for Hawaiian Airlines, if you're flying on the Hawaiian Airlines brand anywhere that the Hawaiian Airlines brand flies, the uniform includes an opportunity to wear flower or pua in your hair, to wear lei, use ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, and then obviously serve a very distinct service that evokes Hawaiʻi. … The reason that we do that is because the ability for us to sustain these two brands in part relies on us holding them distinct and unique from one another. It's the identity, and when you start blending, there is a risk that you actually lose that identity. ...
One of the things that Hawaiian Airlines has heard consistently from guests and from flight attendants as well over time is dissatisfaction with the meal service in the main cabin. So it's great that there's a complimentary meal, but the quality of the meal and the opportunity for choices, including maybe a vegetarian or a vegan choice, was something that continued to be an area (of) feedback that we got. ...
So, what we decided to do is to work with a local chef, chef Sheldon Simeon out of Maui, who has worked with us to design a menu that is based in Hawaiʻi flavors, some of his family recipes, his grandma's mochiko chicken, and be able to bring those meals on into the main cabin experience. And so you know the trade-offs when you have multiple options is wanting to be able to make sure that guests can select an option. You can't just load a ton of options, or else you're going to end up with a lot of food waste. So we do allow guests to pre-select an option upfront, and it will be a meal for purchase rather than a complimentary item, just given the cost trade-offs of making sure that it's a really high-quality option with a lot of choices.
This story aired on The Conversation on June 15, 2026. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. Jinwook Lee adapted this story for the web.
Hawaiian Airlines is an HPR underwriter.
