United and Aloha Airlines plan to expand their code-share agreement. United has also taken a minority stake in Aloha and now occupies a seat on Aloha’s board of directors. Neither airline indicated how large United’s stake is, but United said it “could expand over time.”
The current code-sharing between the airlines consists solely of United placing its code on Aloha’s interisland flights. Under an expanded agreement, each carrier would be able to place its code on the other’s flights between Hawaii and the mainland U.S. and on flights to Japan.
Aloha meanwhile, has unveiled a Boeing 737 jet that was hand-painted by Wyland, a marine life artist known for his outdoor murals of whales and other ocean life. Aloha bestowed the name Koholalele on the jetliner, which went into service on May 10 between Hawaii and the West Coast. The name Koholalele, which means “flying or leaping whale.”
Wyland’s design, which spans the 102-foot length of the plane, includes approximately life-size depictions of humpback whales, bottle-nose dolphins, spinner dolphins, tiger sharks, Hawaiian monk seals and green sea turtles as well as Hawaiian reef fish and a Laysan albatross.
