On Wednesday, Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska Airlines and the Department of Justice entered into a timing agreement for their potential merger, according to a document filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday.
The agreement stipulates Alaska and Hawaiian must first complete a request from the DOJ, providing antitrust-related information and documents, and once the DOJ certifies the response, the airlines must wait 90 days before merging.
On Dec. 2, 2023, Alaska announced it was hoping to buy Hawaiian in a $1.9 billion deal, while taking on $900 million of Hawaiian’s debt. The merged company would continue to operate both airlines with independent brands while combining their operating platform. Still, many questions remain about how many Hawaiian employees will lose their jobs, how leadership will change, and more.
The DOJ sent both Hawaiian and Alaska a request on Feb. 7, 2024, for additional information and documents after reviewing the deal.
Now, the airlines have created a timing agreement with the DOJ. After the DOJ certifies the materials provided by the airlines in response to their request, the airlines will wait 90 days to complete the merger.
According to the filing, both airlines have been working cooperatively with the DOJ and are expected to continue to do so.
The shareholders of Hawaiian Holdings voted to approve the merger deal on Feb. 16, 2024. The airlines previously estimated the time to complete their merger would be within 18 months of the initial announcement. However, the merger still needs the blessing of U.S. regulators, which have been more conservative about airline consolidation, citing concerns of higher prices.
On Jan. 16, 2024, a federal judge agreed with the Biden administration and blocked the $3.8 billion JetBlue-Spirit Airlines merger.
Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com.