"It's a travesty and a tragedy that the illegal actions of a competitor and other factors completely beyond our control have forced us to take this action," CEO David Banmiller said. "Through this filing, we hope to achieve a successful outcome that will protect the jobs of 3,500 dedicated employees who have made extraordinary sacrifices for Aloha." Company officials said they will ask the bankruptcy court for permission to continue operating while going through Chapter 11 restructuring. Aloha and Hawaiian Airlines have been engaged in a fierce battle against go! since it began low-fare inter-island service with 50-seat CRJs in June 2006 (ATWOnline, April 20). Both took legal action against the startup, charging that Mesa had misused confidential information obtained when it was considering an acquisition of the island carriers. Hawaiian was awarded $80 million in October 2007 by a bankruptcy court. Aloha's case is still pending. The inter-island fare wars and the continued escalation of fuel costs have chipped away at profits for all of the carriers. "In the highly competitive inter-island market, Aloha was forced to match go!'s below-cost fares at a time when the airline industry was facing unprecedented increases in the cost of jet fuel," Aloha said in a statement. "The action taken by Aloha Airlines. . .reflects the difficult operating environment in Hawaii's airline industry," Hawaiian President and CEO Mark Dunkerley said. "It is extremely challenging and marked by high operating costs, record high fuel prices and a very competitive pricing structure." Aloha is privately held and does not release financial information, but in December it confirmed to ATWOnline that it had endured a $15.1 million loss in the 2007 third quarter, widened from a $9.9 million deficit in the year-ago period (ATWOnline, Dec. 19). The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported that Aloha has posted 16 straight quarterly losses. by Sandra Arnoult