Aloha Airlines and its flight attendants union have reached a tentative agreement that would eliminate health benefits for future retirees and require flight attendants to contribute to their medical coverage.

The tentative agreement, if ratified by the members, does not call for additional pay cuts. Aloha's flight attendants already have taken two pay cuts of 10 percent each since January 2003.

"Once again the company is asking the flight attendants to make some major sacrifices after significant givebacks in the past," said Karen Nakaoka, vice president of the 400-member Aloha unit of the Association of Flight Attendants.

Nakaoka declined to outline specifics of the tentative agreement before they are presented to the union members. She said that union officials hope to have a vote on the tentative agreement concluded by Nov. 28.

"We want to acknowledge our flight attendants given these times," Aloha spokeswoman Stephanie Ackerman said. "They have really stepped up to the plate and their actions are going to get us that much closer to exiting bankruptcy. Obviously it is pending ratification by the membership and we're hopeful to get it because we're all in this together."

Four of Aloha's five unions have now reached tentative agreements as Aloha hopes to exit bankruptcy by the end of the year.

Representatives of the pilots union appeared in U.S. Bankruptcy Court yesterday for the final day of hearings on whether Aloha should be allowed to cancel the pilots' pension plan and turn it over to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the federal agency that insures basic pension benefits.

Judge Robert Faris instead urged both sides to continue negotiating.

"We're going to continue negotiations toward a consensual agreement as we always have. And we will get a consensual agreement," said Aloha Airlines Capt. Anthony Denzer, secretary/treasurer of Aloha's pilots union.

Ackerman said, "The judge has given a little bit more time for the parties to come to a resolution and that is something that we are definitely going to pursue — working with our pilots in the hope of getting some consensual agreements in short order because it is necessary for our plan of reorganization."

Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.