Hawaiian Airlines L-1011: A True Flower In The Sky

Spotting a Hawaiian Airlines L-1011 with its bright fuchsia and coral livery and Pualani logo evoked warm feelings and thoughts of luxury travel to beautiful tropical islands. Read more about the newest PlaneTags from MotoArt and get a PlaneTag from a Hawaiian Airlines Lockheed L1011.

By JetPix - Gallery page http://www.airliners.net/photo/Hawaiian-Air/Lockheed-L-1011-385-1-TriStar/0255385/L Photo http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/5/8/3/0255385.jpg, GFDL 1.2, Link

Hawaiian Airlines History

Hawaiian Airlines, as Inter-Island Airways, began operating in 1929 with a fleet of two 8 seater Sikorsky S-38s and a Bellanca monoplane. Their first scheduled flight from Honolulu to Hilo took place on November 11, 1929. By 1935, they had carried 13,000 passengers. In preparation for Transpacific operations, in 1941 the airline became known as Hawaiian Airlines. They operated three new 24 passenger DC-3s, which flew in formation from Oakland to Honolulu in a record setting 13 hours, 54 minutes - at the time, the longest over water flight by DC-3. Incidentally, on December 7, 1941, one of their DC-3s carrying 24 passengers was hit by enemy fire at Pearl Harbor. None of the passengers were hurt when the engine caught fire because a stray bullet hit a fire extinguisher, which put out the flames.

Hawaiian Airlines accomplished many more aviation milestones. In 1942, it received U.S. Cargo Service Certificate Number One, becoming the first scheduled air cargo service. In 1950 the airline was awarded the first ever 20 year award by the National Safety Council. They flew their first pressurized, air conditioned service in 1952, using Convair 340s. That was also the year the IIwi bird was added to the logo. They entered the jet age with commercial jet service from Los Angeles to Hawaii, also changing the logo to the Jetbird to symbolize the change to jet service. By 1977, they had flown over 3 million passengers. And in 1979, they made history with the first all female crew to operate a certified scheduled US air carrier.

Hawaiian Airlines L-1011’s

The airline continued expanding its routes and providing global charter service. In 1985, Hawaiian Airlines acquired Lockheed L-1011s and began offering daily scheduled widebody jet service between Hawaii and LAX. Within a few months, daily flights to San Francisco and Seattle were added. During this period, the airline was rated one of the world’s safest airlines according to Condé Nast, and noted that Hawaiian Airlines was only one of five U.S. carriers without an air fatality. To this day, since their founding in 1929, they have not had a fatal accident or the loss of a plane hull.

Between 1993 and 1994, the airline partnered with AMR Corporation, American Airlines’ parent company, which led to several marketing and service agreements, including converting reservation and operating systems to AA’s SABRE and participating in American’s AAdvantage awards program. They also replaced their fleet of L-1011s with DC-10s which were provided and serviced by AA.

Although the DC-10s were from the same era as the L-1011, Hawaiian Airlines had purchased them from other carriers and were experiencing problems with corrosion and other maintenance issues. Today’s Hawaiian Airlines fleet is made up of Airbus A330, Airbus A321neo, Boeing B717, and ATR 42-500.

Hawaiian Airlines Logo and Livery

By From collection of Hawaiian717; original source unknown., Fair use, Link

Hawaiian Airlines logo and livery have evolved over the years. The Iiwi bird was added in 1952, later replaced with the jetbird. In 1973, Pualani (Flower of the Sky) was unveiled to celebrate the airline’s change to an all jet airline, becoming one of the first female icons on the tail of a commercial plane. Updates to Pualani in 2001 and 2017 have featured her more prominently and added touches to show the hibiscus and wind in her hair. Over the years, she has become a beloved symbol of the aloha spirit and a gracious island welcome, underscoring the commitment to providing hospitable, premium service.

L1011 Facts

The Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, known affectionately as “El Ten Eleven”, was a widebody trijet airline produced by the Lockheed Corporation. It was the third widebody airliner to enter commercial operations, after the Boeing 747 and McDonnell Douglas DC-10. It was conceived at the request of American Airlines who was in the market for a new aircraft, a jet that could get around the 60 minute rule. Thus the trijet was born.

The 60 Minute Rule: Airliners with two engines can fly any route that remains within 60 minutes flying time of an airport that is adequate for landing in the event of an emergency. The 60 minute distance is calculated using the aircraft's speed with one engine inoperative in still air (no wind).

While McDonnell Douglas produced the DC-10 using mainly tried and true technology, Lockheed, just having produced the SR-71, designed a technologically advanced trijet. The center mounted engine did not exist at the time so Rolls Royce designed one amidst financial problems that needed to be resolved to get the L-1011 off the ground. In spite of these early problems and an overcrowded market that eventually doomed the project, the L-1011 was a remarkable plane that passengers and pilots adored.

Aside from its roominess and quiet, comfortable flight, it also offered something which had not been seen before - it was the first commercial airliner to be able to fly itself from takeoff to landing. Pilots monitored their instruments and updated altitude and course changes into the automatic flight control system (AFCS) but it could fly and land on its own, locking into an airport's radio beacons.

EI-BTN Facts

Our L-1011 began its journey as N702DA, in service for Delta Air Lines from October 25, 1973. On December 15, 1973 it flew Delta’s first revenue L-1011 flight from Atlanta to Philadelphia with 39 passengers aboard. It served with Delta until 1984 then went to Total Air as N702TT for two years. She then went to Air America from 1986 through 1987, changing registration once again to EI-BTN. She spent her final years in the Hawaiian Airlines fleet before retiring. She was scrapped at Mojave Air and Space Port.

Photo courtesy of Derek Hellmann via Jetphotos.net.

Hawaiian Airlines L-1011 TriStar PlaneTags

When MotoArt owner Dave Hall found out about the plane he knew he had to have it for the PlaneTags collection. “The L-1011 was such a great plane with such an amazing appreciation for it,” says Hall. “We’re always asked if we can offer L-1011 PlaneTags. What makes this one extra special is that it’s Hawaiian Airlines. Their history and the beauty of their logo and livery make this one of our favorites.”

The PlaneTags come in the following colors: white, red, pink, and combos of red/ white and pink/white. They are numbered up to 3,000 . The attached card is as vibrantly colored as the PlaneTags are. They will make the perfect addition to your collection or a great gift for your favorite pilot or avgeek.