Hawaiian Airlines is using the crisis to its advantage

As most planes are resting on Honolulu's tarmac, Hawaiian Airlines is carrying out the necessary maintenance and filling some aircraft with additional ventilation tubes. Even though most planes are grounded and losses keep growing, the airline remains positive: ''We all work together to ensure our aircraft are ready to fly when this situation is over. It's been challenging as this is all new to everyone.''

Photo by Hawaiian Airlines

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Hawaiian Airlines has grounded 52 of its aircraft. Only 9 jets are currently operating, and some of these aircraft are used to assist in the fight to stop the virus. The airline is partnering with healthcare providers to maintain and facilitate the delivery of critical medical services to communities across the United States. The remaining A330s are operating the daily non-stop flight between HNL-SFO and HNL-LAX, and some 717s still perform inter-island flights.

Photo by Hawaiian Airlines

The current situation allows the airline to carry out large maintenance and replace older ventilation tubing on their A321neo aircraft. Around 500 mechanics work around the clock to keep the planes conditioned. The maintenance includes FAA multi-level checks and daily checks on the fuselages and engines as well as cabin upgrades. The A321neo's ventilation tubes are replaced to optimize the cabin pressure and interior air circulation, which takes approximately 160 hours per aircraft.