Pacific Wings CEO Greg Kahlstorf calls rival Mokulele Airlines’ new twice-daily service between Kahului and Hana airports on Maui a losing proposition.
"Perhaps some carrier has some idea that maybe other carriers that served that market for decades failed to see," said the outspoken Kahlstorf. "It’s a free enterprise and they can do anything they want. You’re allowed to throw your money away."
On Wednesday, Mokulele CEO Ron Hansen announced that the airline had partnered with the Travaasa Hana, Maui, to bring in resort guests as well as non-hotel passengers in a move that would benefit both the resort and the airline. The service scheduled to begin Oct. 1 will have a one-way fare of $59.74.
Pacific Wings, the only other airline to serve that route, had been showing a fare for $491.35 on Tuesday. It showed lower fares for that route on Wednesday ranging from $310.42 to $488.02.
But Kahlstorf said his airline’s fares differ at various times during the day and that he didn’t lower fares in response to Mokulele.
"We didn’t do anything in response to anybody else," he said. "You can find discrepancies on everything from orange juice to airplane seats. I don’t see why you call it a discrepancy. It’s just a difference."
Hansen said the airline can make money at $59 a ticket.
But Kahlstorf suggested otherwise.
He noted that Royal Hawaiian Air Service, which once served the Hana market, went out of business and that Island Air stopped flying to Hana.
"If history is any indication, it doesn’t tend to be a real successful market for any airline," he said. "We’re the only airline that did it for any length of time without any subsidy."
Mokulele, which has been expanding its operations, has five nine-seat Cessna Grand Caravan 208B turboprops with a sixth one due by the end of the month.
Pacific Wings, which moved its headquarters to Mesa, Ariz., from Kahului several years ago, has the same aircraft as Mokulele.
Mokulele ran into financial difficulty in 2008 when it was run by CEO Bill Boyer, and reached an agreement with Indianapolis-based Republic Airways to have the larger airline operate flights in Hawaii using 70-seat jets in addition to Mokulele’s turboprops. Boyer was subsequently replaced as CEO, but Republic was bleeding money in Hawaii and in October 2009 agreed to combine operations in a joint venture with Mesa Air Group’s go! The new entity became go!Mokulele.
Mesa sold the turboprop part of its Hawaii business to Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Transpac Aviation, doing business as Mokulele Flight Services Inc., in November 2011 and earlier this year changed its name back to go!
Kahlstorf said Mokulele hasn’t had a good track record.
"The airline that failed with Bill Boyer and failed with Republic and failed with Mesa is going to try something new," he said sarcastically.
"How exciting. It has success written all over it. Now it’s going to try a route that failed for Island Air and every other airline before it except mine. It’s bound to have success written all over it."
