United Airlines Raises Concerns Over Alaska-Hawaiian Merger

Skift Take

United’s issue is its multiple business agreements with Hawaiian — including one on loyalty. Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci has previously said he envisions a loyalty program that would house the two brands if the merger is approved.

Meghna Maharishi

United Airlines raised concerns to the Department of Transportation about how an Alaska-Hawaiian merger could impact its relationship with Hawaiian Airlines. 

Robert Rivkin, United’s chief legal officer, spoke with DOT deputy general counsel Brian Stansbury about these concerns on August 27, according to a government filing that was posted on Thursday. United has interline, codeshare, pricing strategy and loyalty agreements with Hawaiian. The memo didn’t go into more detail about United’s concerns. 

The DOT is currently reviewing the proposed merger after the Justice Department ended its regulatory review on August 20. If Alaska-Hawaiian clears the DOT review, then the merger will be allowed to proceed. 

The merger has been widely viewed as a lifeline for Hawaiian, which has dealt with declining revenues since the pandemic. A lack of inbound Japanese tourism to Hawaii — a key market for the airline — and a slow recovery in tourism to Maui since last year’s wildfires have hurt Hawaiian’s bottom line. 

An Alaska-Hawaiian merger would create the fifth largest airline in the U.S. and give Alaska greater access to Hawaii, along with Asia, potentially. 

United did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

2 Brands, 1 Loyalty Program

Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci previously said he envisioned a loyalty program for the combined airline that would operate like Marriott Bonvoy. 

“So think of something like Marriott Bonvoy, right? You’re part of Marriott Bonvoy, but you could stay in different hotels right under this house of brands. So that’s how we’re thinking about it,” he said when the merger was first announced December 3.

Minicucci and Hawaiian CEO Peter Ingram said in December they wanted to keep the Alaska and Hawaiian brands separate while under the same loyalty program due to each carrier’s local culture and history. Ingram said the benefits for Hawaiian’s loyalty program would stay the same until the merger closes. 

“The one biggest question I have is Ben, ‘how are you gonna do a dual brand under a single platform?’” Minicucci said. “And I just say there is no other choice. We will figure it out because we need to respect the culture and the legacy that’s been created here for over 94 years.”