Hawaiian Airlines Introduces First Class Auction Upgrade

In partnership with Plusgrade, Bid Up by Hawaiian Airlines offers guests the chance to name their price for First Class seats

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Hawaiian Airlines

Jun 16, 2016, 04:00 ET

HONOLULU, June 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Hawaiian Airlines today announced the launch of Bid Up by Hawaiian Airlines, a new auction upgrade service allowing guests to elevate their in-flight experience by bidding on available First Class seats when traveling between Hawai'i and North America.

"We're extremely excited to introduce Bid Up to our guests," said Miranda Scott, managing director – travel products for Hawaiian Airlines. "We understand travelers have different options when planning trips to Hawaiʻi, which is why we're committed to providing each guest with unique offerings and exceptional benefits."

Bid Up, managed by Plusgrade, is a simple and easy-to-use service available to all ticketed main cabin guests whose itinerary contains at least one segment between Hawai'i and North America operated by Hawaiian Airlines. Eligible guests will receive a Bid Up email approximately 10 days prior to departure inviting them to bid for available First Class seats. Successful bidders will be notified 48 hours prior to departure.

Guests taking advantage of Bid Up will enjoy the many benefits of Hawaiian's First Class cabin, including: Two complimentary checked bags with Priority Baggage handling; expedited check-in lines; access to Hawaiian Airlines Premier Clubs; priority pre-boarding; award-winning regional cuisine from acclaimed Chef Chai Chaowasaree; unlimited in-flight beverage service; free access to the latest movies, hours of TV and music programming; and much more.

Hawaiian also recently announced the arrival of the airline's first A330 Premium Cabin with fully lie-flat seating. Today, Hawaiian's wide-body, twin-aisle A330-200 aircraft seat 294 passengers, with 18 in Business/First Class, 40 in Extra Comfort and 236 in the Main Cabin. In the new configuration, the aircraft will seat 278 passengers, with 18 in the Premium Cabin, 68 in Extra Comfort and 192 in the Main Cabin. Seat pitch in the Main Cabin will remain a roomy 31 inches.

Hawaiian's first A330 aircraft equipped with the new Premium Cabin entered the carrier's U.S. West Coast network this month as an exciting surprise-and-delight feature for guests. Sales for the Premium Cabin are expected to commence in the fall, when the first dedicated routes will be revealed along with new signature service elements and a host of new amenities.

For more information, please visit http://www.hawaiianairlines.com/bidup.

About Plusgrade
Plusgrade is the market leading provider of upgrade solutions, a key segment of the fast-growing ancillary revenue and merchandising sector in the global airline industry. With over 50 airline customers worldwide, the Company's software solutions provide its global base of customers with meaningful incremental revenue and controls, allowing them to enhance and optimize revenue across classes of service.

One of the fastest and most widely adopted ancillary revenue platforms, Plusgrade's proprietary SaaS platform delivers a difference to the bottom line in the fastest-possible time scale. Founded in 2009, Plusgrade has offices in Montreal, Canada and New York. For more information, please visit www.plusgrade.com

About Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian® has led all U.S. carriers in on-time performance for each of the past 12 years (2004-2015) as reported by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Consumer surveys by Condé Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure and Zagat have all ranked Hawaiian the highest of all domestic airlines serving Hawai'i.

Now in its 87th year of continuous service, Hawaiian is Hawai'i's biggest and longest-serving airline, as well as the largest provider of passenger air service from its primary visitor markets on the U.S. Mainland. Hawaiian offers non-stop service to Hawai'i from more U.S. gateway cities (11) than any other airline, along with service from Japan, South Korea, China, Australia, New Zealand, American Samoa and Tahiti. Hawaiian also provides approximately 160 jet flights daily between the Hawaiian Islands, with a total of more than 200 daily flights system-wide.

Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a subsidiary of Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: HA). Additional information is available at HawaiianAirlines.com. Follow updates on Twitter about Hawaiian (@HawaiianAir) and its special fare offers (@HawaiianFares), and become a fan on its Facebook page (Hawaiian Airlines).

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SOURCE Hawaiian Airlines