After a year of bruising for the airline industry, Hawaiian Airlines CEO Peter Ingram told CNBC he thinks he’s just from here.
Airlines have spent much of 2020 reducing routes and reducing flights due to declining travel demand due to the coronavirus pandemic, but companies such as Delta and United Airlines have announced a number of new additions in recent months.
Hawaiian Airlines joins the fight with new non-stop flights from Honolulu to Austin, Texas; Orlando, Florida and Ontario, California, will be added in the spring. The Honolulu-based company anticipates a return to air travel in the new year and is trying to capitalize on trends in the population of the southern states.
“The reason it’s time to announce three new routes is because … we’re very optimistic about 2021,” he told Closing Bell. “These are places we’ve been looking at for a long time. They have a strong demand for Hawaii.”
Austin has established itself among the country’s top technology scenes, competing with the traditional technology ecosystem for which the San Francisco Bay Area is famous. The Texas capital has attracted the interest of several technology companies that have either opened factories there or announced plans to move their headquarters to California.
Earlier this month, Oracle, a Silicon Valley pillar, said it would move its headquarters to Austin. It is one of a number of companies intending to move corporate operations out of California.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk moved his personal residence to Texas, dividing most of his time between Austin and Boca Chica, where SpaceX facilities are located. Tesla, which remains headquartered in Palo Alto, California, and the start of the Musk Tunnel, Boring Co., both have operations in Austin.
Apple is also growing its presence in the Texas capital, where it is investing $ 1 billion in a 3 million square meter campus. The site is expected to employ 5,000 people and is scheduled to open in 2022.
“We’ve seen coverage in your air about how Austin is booming as a technology hub these days, and we think a lot of those people will want to travel to Hawaii,” Ingram said. “The same goes for Orlando, which has a growing population.”
Florida has long been a hot spot for retirees, and the state’s population has been steadily rising. Due to changes in the US population, Texas is expected to add three seats to its US delegation, and Florida is expected to take two, the Associated Press reported.
Based on Census Bureau estimates, 10 states, including New York, Michigan and California, risk losing at least one seat in the House of Commons, which could have a visible effect on the nation’s political map, according to the AP.
Hawaiian Airlines reported revenue declines of about 90 percent in the last two quarterly reports.
“At a time when the depth of some of our traditional routes may not be what it used to be, it is a good opportunity for us to look at expanding our network and see great opportunities in all of this, not just next year. , but also for the long term, “Ingram said.
Shares of Hawaiian Airlines fell 1.55% in a short trading day, in recognition of Christmas Eve. At $ 17.78 per share, the stock is down 39% so far.
The stock is more than double its pandemic low of $ 7.55 since mid-March.