Airline offers $99 one-way fare to Osaka

Low-cost, long-haul Malaysian carrier AirAsia X is beginning its maiden U.S. service with introductory one-way fares starting at $99 from Honolulu to Osaka and $149 for continuing service to Kuala Lumpur.

The return leg from Osaka to Honolulu is an introductory $162.36, while flying from Kuala Lumpur to Honolulu, with a layover in Osaka, is $198.02 one way. Round trips would be as low as $261.36 and $347.02, respectively.

The airline will operate its Kuala Lumpur-Osaka-Honolulu route four times a week beginning June 28. The introductory fares are available for travel from June 28 to Feb. 6 with flight departures on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Hawaiian, Japan and Delta airlines also fly between Honolulu and Osaka. During the late-June time period, their round-trip prices start in the low $600s to mid-$800s. Prices are more expensive if booked one way.

“This is the game-changing route we have all been waiting for,” Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, AirAsia X Group CEO, said Friday in a statement. “By connecting the U.S to North Asia and ASEAN with our world-class low fares offering, we will make it possible for those in the Pacific to explore Asia through our wide network.”

Hawaiian Air pilots to vote on tentative pact

Hawaiian Airlines and union leaders of the Air Line Pilots Association have put the finishing touches on a 63-month tentative contract following two years of contract talks.

The company said Friday night the contract amendment covers 665 pilots and that a ratification vote by the pilots will be held March 6-24. If ratified, the amendment becomes effective April 1 and remains in effect until July 1, 2022. The previous contract ended Sept. 15, 2015.

Earlier in the week ALPA said an agreement had been reached “in principle” but that the two sides were finalizing language in the contract.

“I am pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement that offers our pilots a significant increase in compensation,” said Jon Snook, Hawaiian’s chief operating officer and the company’s lead negotiator.

The company didn’t disclose any contract details, but earlier in the week an internal memo that ALPA sent to its pilots indicated that its most experienced captains flying Hawaiian’s largest jets would see their pay jump 40 percent to $290 an hour, up from the $207 an hour they currently are paid.

ON THE MOVE

>> Outrigger Enterprises Group has appointed Karen Codilla as corporate director of pricing, revenue systems and distribution. Before joining Outrigger, Codilla served as director of revenue and distribution and an executive team member of the Modern Honolulu as well as a senior market manager at Travelocity.

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