Hawaiian Airlines operated the inaugural flight of its new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. N781HA (c/n 66429) departed Honolulu’s Daniel K Inouye International Airport on April 15, bound for San Francisco. The first 787 guests were welcomed with live music and hula by the Hawaiian Airlines Serenaders. The widebody will operate non-stop, daily Honolulu-San Francisco flights until May 14, when it will join its second 787, N780HA (c/n 66428), to begin services between Honolulu-Los Angeles from May 14 and Honolulu-Phoenix from May 15. The carrier has 12 787-9s on order, three of which are due to arrive by the end of 2024, with the remaining deliveries continuing through to 2027.
Delta Air Lines has retained its position as the world’s most valuable airline brand for the sixth consecutive year, according to analysis by Brand Finance. The US carrier’s brand value rose 21% last year, to $10.8bn. American Airlines (brand value up 21% to $10.2bn), United Airlines (brand value up 11% to $8.7bn) and Southwest Airlines (brand value up 15% to $5.4bn) kept their places in second, third and fifth spots. Emirates was in fourth place.
The US Federal Aviation Administration is to install new runway safety technology. Austin/ Bergstrom, Indianapolis, Nashville and Dallas/Love Field will be the first to receive airfield surveillance systems that will reduce the risk of runway incursions by improving air traffic controllers’ situational awareness. The Surface Awareness Initiative (SAI) system uses Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) data to display surface traffic to controllers. Aircraft and ADS-Bequipped vehicles appear as icons on a map that depicts runways, taxiways, hold ramps and other areas.