Hawaiian Airlines (HA, Honolulu) has engaged Boeing over a potential rescheduling of its upcoming B787-9 deliveries but has yet to reach any decisions, Chief Executive Officer Peter Ingram said during a quarterly earnings call.

The airline has five B787-9s on firm order and planned to start taking them in 2021.

Hawaiian has announced relatively modest adjustments to its fleet strategy in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, affecting just a single A321-200neo originally scheduled to deliver in March 2020, which is also the 18th and final aircraft of the type to join Hawaiian's fleet.

"Prior to the impulsive COVID-19, our intent was to pay for the delivery from our cash reserves. However, in light of the dramatic change in industry circumstances, we have worked with Airbus (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac) to delay acceptance of this aircraft to the second quarter to allow us time to secure financing which will result in a net cash inflow," Chief Financial Officer Shannon Okinaka said.

The airline has also deferred USD50 million in non-aircraft capital expenditure.

Okinaka added that Hawaiian Airlines was planning to retire and part-out one of its older B717-200s "which will bring meaningful maintenance cost savings over the next several years and cash savings in the immediate term".

According to the ch-aviation fleets module, Hawaiian Airlines currently operates twenty B717-200s which average 18.4 years of age and range from 23,647 to 34,666 flight hours and from 22,912 to 70,349 flight cycles (as of February 29, 2020). Fifteen aircraft are owned by the airline with the remainder owned by BCC Equipment Leasing.

On top of the fleet adjustments, the airline is also looking at using its free assets to raise additional liquidity.

"We're also aggressively exploring options to raise cash by financing a portion of our unencumbered aircraft which consists of eleven A321neo, two A330-200s, fourteen B717s, and eight ATRs and have a market value of approximately USD800 million," Okinaka said, adding that the A321neo were particularly "financeable". The airline expects to raise around USD270 million in the second quarter alone.

Besides the fifteen B717-200s, Hawaiian Airlines owns fifteen out of seventeen already delivered A321neo, twelve out of twenty-four A330-200s, as well as four ATR42-500s and four ATR 72-200(F)/-500(F)/-600Fs operated on its behalf by Empire Airlines (EM, Coeur d'Alene).