What's in a name? Plenty.

There's certainly enough in the name "Aloha" to warrant some rethinking by Mesa Air Group Inc., which would like to be able to license the name for its Isle airline subsidiary now known as go!

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Lloyd King is reviewing a settlement between Mesa and Yucaipa Co., which owned the now defunct Aloha Airlines. The plan: Mesa would pay Yucaipa to license the Aloha brand as a new name for its go! airline operations.

Trouble is, the newcomer go! is seen locally as a primary factor that drove the well-established Aloha out of business. The failure of the business cost 1,900 people their jobs; many of them resent the idea of go! using the name.

The idea is to gain acceptance through name recognition, and the Aloha brand has familiarity among customers.

Will that benefit transfer to Mesa, the new users of the name? It's possible. Mesa is banking on Aloha being a lure for visitors in Asia and other markets who are remote from the bankruptcy drama; it argues that it's better to keep the brand alive than bury it.

While it's important to enable success for key industries, it's unfortunate that more consideration isn't given to the importance of the word "aloha," not only as a business brand but as the essence of Hawai'i.

Judge King will have a legal basis for his February decision on the deal, but his personal reaction — one of distaste — was apt. If go! succeeds, it will likely require more than a rented name. There's no aloha in that.