Aloha Airlines
Hawaii’s Aloha Airlines operates as an island hopping airline servicing all the
Hawaiian Islands, plus service to the West Coast of the mainland US. The Aloha Airline also previously serviced Japan, but those routes were canceled due to financial problems in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, plus the 2003 SARS outbreak in Asia.

Aloha Airline is most famous to people outside of its service area for an unusual airline incident that became the subject of a TV movie.

Aloha Airlines – The Company Story
Aloha Airlines got its start in 1946, as a charter flight only airline and a direct competitor to Hawaiian Airline. In 1949, the airline began flying scheduled, passenger flights instead of charter flights. Initially, the airline only flew routes between the various Hawaiian Islands.

In 1969, Aloha Airlines acquired its first jet and began first flying routes to the mainland US, and later, to Japan. The airline continued adding to their fleet and expanding services until 2001, when the 9/11 terror attacks caused financial waves across the entire airline industry. The airline took a financial hit again with the 2003 SARS outbreak in Asia. Aloha filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2004, and stayed there until 2006. Aloha Airlines has a new corporate board, who is conducting corporate finance studies to decide about buying versus leasing aircrafts for the airline’s future.

Aloha Airlines Flight 243 Accident
Aloha Airlines Flight 243, from Hilo, HI, to Honolulu, HI, was involved in one of the most famous and startling incidents in aviation history. On April 28, 1988, Aloha 243 took off from Hilo and sometime during the flight, at 26,000 feet, an eighteen foot section of the plane broke away. Remarkably, only one person was killed; a flight attendant who was sucked from the place as the fuselage blew away. The plane managed to fly on to Honolulu, with the huge portion of the roof of the plane gone, and land safely. The Aloha Airlines Flight 243 accident report blamed metal corrosions for the accident, and Patrick Smith’s account of the incident reports that a passenger noticed a crack in the plane before taking off, but failed to tell anyone.

Buy Aloha Airlines Tickets
To get cheap Aloha Airline fares, visit their website. To earn miles or upgrade to first class, buy your tickets with an Aloha Airlines reward credit card.