BUSINESS BRIEFS
Hawaiian tops for on-time
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Hawaiian Airlines had the best on-time record in the airline industry in March for the third straight month.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, 93.9 percent of Hawaiian Airlines' flights were on time, topping the industry average by 20.6 percentage points.
Hawaiian also had the fewest canceled flights (one cancellation out of 4,683 total flights) and had the second-best record for misplaced baggage (3.81 bags for every 1,000 customers).
DECLINE IN RIDERS ON GOLDEN WEEK
JAL Group, owner of Japan Airlines and Japan Air System, said there was an 8.6 percent decline in passengers to Hawai'i during the recent Golden Week period.
The Tokyo-based airline holding company said it carried 44,356 passengers to the Aloha State from April 27 to May 6, a 10-day period when there are a number of public holidays. It said the number of available seats to Hawai'i was off 4.5 percent from a year earlier.
The company also reported an almost 21 percent decline in passengers on flights to Oceania, while it had increases for its Guam, South Korea and China destinations.
Competitor ANA Group, operator of All Nippon Airways and five other carriers, said passengers on its international flights during Golden Week increased by 6 percent, led by an increase in those headed to China. It did not break out numbers for Hawai'i flights.
TRANS FATS CUT FROM STARBUCKS
SEATTLE — Starbucks Corp. announced yesterday that it will cut artificial trans fats out of food and drinks in its stores in the continental United States, Alaska and Canada by the end of the year.
Starbucks started ridding its U.S. and Canadian stores of trans fats in January. Company spokesman Brandon Borrman said trans fats will eventually be eliminated from its Hawai'i stores, but that it will not likely happen by the end of the year because jurisdiction for the state is being shifted from Starbucks' international division to its domestic unit.
The coffee retailer isn't about to quit selling its whipped cream-topped Frappuccino shakes or rich baked sweets, but said it will only use ingredients with naturally occurring fats, like butter, whole milk, eggs and whipped cream.
