After a tough year for the airline industry, Hawaiian Airlines CEO Peter Ingram told CNBC he believes it’s only from here.
Airlines have spent much of 2020 cutting routes and reducing flights due to the decline in travel demand due to the coronavirus pandemic, but companies, including Delta and United Airlines, have made some new additions in recent months announced.
Hawaiian Airlines Joins the Fight with New Nonstop Flights from Honolulu to Austin, Texas; Orlando, Florida and Ontario, California are added in the spring. The Honolulu-based company expects a rebound in air travel in the new year and is seeking to capitalize on population growth in the southern states.
“The reason it is time to announce three new routes is because … we are very optimistic about 2021,” he said on “Closing Bell”. “These are places we’ve been looking at for a long time. They are in high demand for Hawaii.”
Austin has established itself among the best tech scenes in the country, competing with the traditional tech ecosystem that the San Francisco Bay Area is known for. The Texas capital has drawn interest from multiple technology companies that have opened factories there or announced plans to relocate their headquarters from California.
Earlier this month, Oracle, a Silicon Valley mainstay, said it would move its headquarters to Austin. It is one of several companies planning to relocate their operations outside of California.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has moved his personal home to Texas, splitting most of his time between Austin and Boca Chica, where SpaceX facilities are located. Tesla, which remains headquartered in Palo Alto, California, and Musk’s tunnel start, Boring Co., both have offices in Austin.
Apple is also expanding its presence in the Texas capital, where it is investing $ 1 billion in a 3 million square foot campus. The site is expected to employ 5,000 people and is scheduled to open in 2022.
“I saw in your broadcast how Austin is booming as a technology hub today, and we think a lot of those people 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 to relocate, and the population in the state has been steadily increasing. Due to population shifts in the US, Texas is expected to add three seats to the US House delegation and Florida is expected to take over two, the Associated Press reported.
Based on Census Bureau estimates, 10 states, including New York, Michigan, and California, are at risk of losing at least one seat in the House Chamber, which could have a noticeable effect on the country’s political map, according to the AP .
Hawaiian Airlines reported a revenue decline of about 90% 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 great opportunity for us to look at broadening our network, and we see great opportunities from all of these, not just for the next. years, but also for the long term, ”said Ingram.
Shares of Hawaiian Airlines were down 1.55% on a shortened trading day in honor of Christmas Eve. At $ 17.78 per share, the stock remains 39% lower to date.
The stock is more than double the pandemic low of $ 7.55 as of mid-March.