I was excited to finally experience Hawaiian Airlines’ new Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the Seattle–Incheon route. We are in the odd time of the merger where it’s still a Hawaiian airline and flight, but I had 027 ticket stock, meaning the ticket was really for Alaska Airlines Seattle to Seoul, but operated by Hawaiian. The plan was simple, book Extra Comfort seats and hope our upgrade would process with our certificate. If they didn’t we would have a a little more legroom and a better ride on a long-haul flight. We snagged 18G and 18J, which are aisle and window seats in the forward economy cabin.
Unfortunately, the trip didn’t go as planned.
Alaska 787 Extra Comfort
The plan is fully outfit in the Hawaiian color’s and onboard offering. They do not offer a true premium economy cabin. Instead Atmos Titanium members can chose Extra Comfort seats. These are still economy class seat but come with slightly more space. Oddly enough, even though the plane is 3x3x3 in economy, only Rows 14-24 Seats A,BC and G,H,J are extra comfort. Seats D,E,F in the same row are standard economy seats with less pitch.
Extra Comfort Seats come with the following
- More legroom: 34 inches vs 31 inches of pitch
- Priority boarding
- Enhanced amenity kit and beverage service
- USB and USB-C at every seat and power outlets at every other seat to share.
- HD 9 inch inflight entertainment screens
The Alaska/Hawaiian Air 787, the cabin feels modern and airy thanks to larger windows and improved humidity control. Seat pitch in Extra Comfort is around 34 inches, which makes a noticeable difference on a 10+ hour flight. The seats were actually very plush and comfortable. The headrest, is new and still like a pillow. I was very comfortable and was impressed by the comfort of an economy class seat.
After boarding, the flight attendants also gave us upgraded amenity kits. They walked down the aisle first handing out amenity kits to those passengers along the fuselage and then came back with a paper one for those sitting in the main cabin. So despite being side by side, different flyers received different perks base on the cabin class.
The Reality: Engine Issues and Cancellation
We boarded on time and settled into our seats. First impressions? Comfortable for economy, great color scheme. Comfortable for economy. The cushioning felt firm but supportive, and the extra legroom was a game-changer. More importantly the headrest was pillow like. The 787’s quieter cabin and mood lighting added to the premium feel. No Wi-fi though, that sucks. I had forgotten that only Hawaiian’s A330 currently have wi-fi. The 787 is still without connectivity.
Then came the delays.
- First delay: The didn’t say, but it would only take a few minutes. No big deal, we pushed back a few minutes behind schedule.
- Second delay: An engine issue required maintenance checks. Back to the gate we go
- Extended delay: After 3 hours of waiting, the flight attendants timed out due to FAA crew duty limits. They opted not to extend (Contract negation ploy)
- Result: Flight canceled. Everyone off the plane after sitting for over 3 hours.
To Hawaiian’s credit, the crew kept passengers informed, with an update every 45 minutes or so. Not the best, but heck we did get 1 water service and I did get to try out the seat. Annoyingly though after we returned to the gate, the IFE turned off. They did not turn it back on and the 787 also blocks cellular service. Which left us stuck in our seats without any connectivity. It was like a flight to nowhere. During this time we were not permitted to leave the aircraft either, because we “might” be leaving soon.
Hawaiian and Alaska Do Not Coordinate rebooking
Once the flight was officially canceled, the real headache began. Hawaiian routed every passenger to their ticket counters for rebooking, and Alaska agents refused to assist. Because this was a Hawaiian Flight cancellation, not an Alaska flight. Even though this was 027 ticket stock, they have a single operating certificate, they don’t care. Alaska has several customer service desks airside at Seatac airport, yet instead everyone was sent to the small Hawaiian desk pre-security.
Naturally as we exited the plan, we all went to the first CSA desk. It was only a few feet from the gate. While in line, a supervisor came over and made an announcement that Alaska would not be helping with the rebooking. Proceed to the Hawaiian Airlines desk. The result? Hundreds of frustrated travelers in line, while others were still trying to check in for unrelated flights. It was a mess. Some Hawaiian Airline employees were shouting for the attention of those who were trying to check in, while others were making announcement that they were not going to able to solve everyone’s rebooking issue.
While standing in line, my partner called Hawaiian’s call center for help. It’s located in the Philippines, and those poor phone agents are out of touch with limited resources and only scripts. Their response? “Your flight isn’t canceled—you’re en route to Korea.” Completely unacceptable. It shows a serious disconnect between operations and customer service.
Thankfully, I was already on the phone with Alaska. They initially told me to call Hawaiian. WHAT?! This is 027 ticket stock. I had to push, but finally the agent started to coordinate rebooking options. After a failure to be able to be rebooked on anything the same day and the pre-cancellation of our return flight a few days later, we opted for a refund.
The lack of coordination between Alaska and Hawaiian during irregular operations is mind boggling and terrible. There is easy fixes to this situation, including providing at least supervisors with training on both systems. Have profession brand liaisons until both airlines have a single booking system. Instead it’s an us vs them game and it is only putting passengers in the middle while causing brand damage.
Bottom Line
Although I did not get to fly Alaska 787, I did get to sit in the seat for nearly 4 hours and have a glass of water. It was a flight to nowhere. I mean the cabin door did close and we did push back from the gate. So I guess I did technically ride on an Alaska 787, even if it was just to taxi.
Overall from what I did experience, the Extra Comfort seats deliver on space and amenities—if you can actually take off 😜. The Hawaiian’s 787 (soon to be Alaska 787) is impressive, and a huge upgrade to the Alaska Airlines fleet. There is a lot of potential, but operational reliability matters more than comfort. I look forward to actually flying the Hawaiian Air 787 or the Alaska Airline 787 on a route sometime in the near future. Hopefully in business class and not premium economy or main cabin extra comfort. But if you find yourself back here, know there’s lots of legroom and a great headrest for now.
