Third times a charm... not so much. Mahalo Air began as the previous  endeavors...start a third inter-island airline to offer discounted fares to local residents and visitors alike. Mahalo started with an arrangement with Empire  Airlines (Hayden, Idaho) to utilize their FAA operating certificate and using 2 Fokker F-27-500 aircraft. The first flight came in October 1993. While Empire operated these early flights, Mahalo was busy developing its own FAA Part 121 operating certificate. The Empire contract ended in May 1994, before Mahalo was ready with the new certificate and the new ATR-42 aircraft.

In October 1994, the new ATR-42's took flight but in less than 3 years,

Mahalo Air declared bankruptcy.

See more about Mahalo below.