Roberts Hawaii plans Pearl Harbor shuttle
Roberts Hawaii plans to begin a new scheduled shuttle service next month competing for many of the roughly 1.8 million visitors going to Pearl Harbor each year.
The local tour and transportation firm announced plans Friday to operate a shuttle between Waikiki and the popular tourist destination starting May 1.
Roberts said the service is modeled on its shuttle running between Waikiki and Waikele Premium Outlets.
The move will introduce new competition carrying visitors between Waikiki and Pearl Harbor, which is served by other transportation firms.
Roberts said its shuttle will stop at six points in Waikiki with four departure and four return times. The cost to ride is $15 for adults and $10 for children ages 3 to 12.
Roberts, established in 1941, is the state’s largest tour and transportation firm with a fleet of about 900 vehicles and 1,800 employees.
Comcast withdraws bid for Time Warner
WASHINGTON » Pay-television leader Comcast Corp. withdrew its $45 billion bid for Time Warner Cable Inc. in the face of a long fight with federal regulators, sending the smaller cable firm on its own in a churning marketplace without the heft it had sought in a merger.
The decision, announced Friday, came after federal regulators earlier this week made their opposition to the deal on antitrust grounds clear to both sides.
Meanwhile, Charter Communications Inc. revived its interest in acquiring Time Warner Cable and its crown jewel markets of Los Angeles and New York, according to a person close to the situation who asked not to be identified discussing the situation.
Charter, backed by billionaire John Malone, took its first shot at the acquisition in mid-2013. That bid led Time Warner Cable to approach Comcast, which called off the effort after a 14-month battle to win regulatory approval.
Amazon appeals to FAA on use of drones
Amazon.com Inc. wants a chance to prove that a drone delivery service would be safer than the U.S. government thinks.
In its most detailed public disclosure about a proposed service called Prime Air, Amazon is arguing that cargo drones should be allowed to take flight if the online retailer can show they’re not going to collide with planes or crash to the ground.
The drones, still in development, would mostly fly at least 200 feet off the ground, relying on sensors and computers to select a route to customers’ doors and avoid hazards, Amazon said in a request Friday to the Federal Aviation Administration seeking leniency on pending drone regulations. One Amazon employee would operate many drones simultaneously, according to the request letter.
Sinking fuel prices lift American Air’s net
FORT WORTH, Texas » The fuel bill at American Airlines fell by nearly half in the first quarter, helping the company set a record profit despite a dip in revenue.
The combination of cheaper fuel and steady demand for flights within the U.S. is boosting all the major domestic airlines, with American joining Delta, United, Southwest and Hawaiian in posting sharply higher earnings.
American Airlines Group Inc. said Friday that net income was $932 million, nearly double last year’s $480 million, the previous record for the quarter.
The record profit, however, was less than the company’s $1.36 billion savings on fuel, compared with a year earlier.
And that captures the challenge that American and other airlines will face later this year: How will they keep boosting profits in the third and fourth quarters, when their results will be compared with the falling fuel prices of late 2014?
American’s president, Scott Kirby, said the airline must increase revenue for every seat it flies one mile, a figure known in the industry by the acronym RASM.
"We will have to get to a world where RASM is growing, and I hope that will be the case," Kirby said on a conference call with analysts and reporters.
Revenue fell nearly 2 percent in the first quarter to $9.83 billion. The per-mile statistic cited by Kirby fell at a similar rate, and American predicted it will decline even more sharply in the second quarter, by between 4 percent and 6 percent.
GM CEO Barra’s pay triples to $15.8 million
DETROIT » General Motors CEO Mary Barra’s compensation more than tripled in 2014 to $15.8 million in her tumultuous first year in the automaker’s top job.
Barra and other top executives got only 74 percent of the cash incentives they could have received, because GM fell short of goals set by the board. But her stock awards more than doubled from 2013 when she was senior vice president of product development and purchasing.
ON THE MOVE
Bank of Hawaii has announced the following promotion and new hire:
» Cindy Lam to financial risk assessment manager and vice president of its accounting department from senior financial risk officer and assistant vice president. She has been a reserve analyst for the bank, as well as senior internal auditor for Central Pacific Bank and a senior auditor for Ernst & Young.
» Ken Niimura as vice president and international private banking manager for its private banking department. He has been a vice president and assistant manager for Central Pacific Bank’s international banking department, president of Obun Hawaii Inc. and chief marketing officer for H&U Inc. and The Pacific Bridge Cos. He also served as president and chief operating officer for Ito En USA in Honolulu for nine years.
Aqua Hospitality and Aston Hotels & Resorts has promoted Elizabeth Churchill to chief revenue officer. She is a 10-year veteran of Aqua Hospitality and will oversee the marketing and re-branding of properties in Hawaii and on the mainland.
