Hawaiian Air Is Not Blownnnnnnnnnn!
A big w for the people (surfers), right in time for winter on the Rock.
If Billy Kemper asked me to change my ways, I probably would too.
Yesterday Hawaiian airlines amended their baggage policy to make surfers happier. For a hot minute in 2016, they were surfing’s arch nemesis after pulling in 81 mil in bag fees, which as Kelly Slater so aptly stated, is “a ridiculous and default profit racket.”
It’s also why this this video exists, which is still funny.
But now we (speaking on behalf of the ~3 billion surfers in the world) cool and buried the hatchet.
Yesterday, Hawaiian Air announced they are accepting board bags up to 100 pounds (45 kg), and lowered the price of transporting boards from the US mainland (from $100USD to $75USD), and internationally (from $150USD to $75USD).
Australian and New Zealanders will continue to be able to transport boards for free as part of the two-checked bag allowance.
You can view their updated policy here.
Traveling with boards is notoriously annoying, namely because of all the arbitrary excess fees written in tiny lil fineprint. In Hawaii, where people often take guns and coffins fitting 6+ board quivers, it is particularly annoying, particularly for resident surfers that often travel to surf.
Billy Kemper, the WSL big wave World Champ and 4x Jaws winner, opted for the power of the pen to bring about meaningful, lasting change, despite having alternative, potentially less diplomatic methods at his disposal. “A harmless man is not a good man. A good man is a dangerous man who has it under voluntary control,” said someone wise.
Billy is definitely the latter.
The results are a substantial improvement, and the timing couldn’t really be any better with the Islands already showing teeth coming into winter.
Power to the people. Go Hawaiian Airlines.
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