HONOLULU — Citing a need to pay off debt, Hawaiian Airlines officials say a profitable year won’t directly affect ticket prices. “Prices are a function of the market, and we can’t signal what the market is going to do, but
HONOLULU — Citing a need to pay off debt, Hawaiian Airlines officials say a profitable year won’t directly affect ticket prices.
“Prices are a function of the market, and we can’t signal what the market is going to do, but the profit we saw in 2015 went to paying off debt,” said Alison Croyle, Hawaiian Airlines spokeswoman.
According to a financial report by Hawaiian Holdings, a parent company of Hawaiian Airlines, the airline’s 2015 adjusted net income was $189.3 million. In 2014, Hawaiian Airlines brought in $97.1 million.
The company used last year’s profit to pay off $195 million in debt, Croyle said.
“We used all of our income and some of our cash to strengthen our balance sheet and position us for continued growth as a company,” she said. “It’s similar to owning a home; when your pay increases or you get a bonus, it’s smart to pay down some of that debt so you can keep your family’s future secure.”
Hawaiian’s adjusted net income in the fourth quarter grew to $48.5 million, or 85 cents per diluted share, an increase of $22.4 million or $45 cents per diluted share year-over-year.
Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian Airlines president and chief executive officer, said the fourth quarter results finished off a great year for Hawaiian.
“The low cost of fuel, robust demand in all of our major geographies, manageable industry capacity growth between Mainland and Hawaii in the second half of the year,and the wonderful customer service delivered by my colleagues on the ground and in the air have combined for a record setting 2015,” he said. “The strong financial results validate the decision we made to grow rapidly in the last five years.”
In 2015, Hawaiian Airlines incurred $772 million in debt, which mostly used to buy three airplanes, according to the report.
Another priority was growing into new markets, Croyle said.
Last year, the company expanded summer services from Los Angeles and Oakland to Kauai and Kona. It also plans to add a nonstop flight from Honolulu to Tokyo, beginning in July, according to the release.
Additionally, the airline flew a record 10.7 million passengers, a 4.7 percent increase from 2014, and increased pay for 2,200 employees.
“We’re moving in the right direction,” said Peter Ingram, executive vice president and chief commercial officer of Hawaiian Airlines.
Dunkerley added: “Looking forward, our outlook is for these positive trends to continue and the headwind of a strong US dollar in our international markets to decelerate, giving us a measure of confidence that 2016 will be an even better year for our business,”
