note
The airline started operations in 2002 and was originally named HMY Airways, before being renamed Harmony Airways in May 2004. It was wholly owned by David Ho.
The Canadian aviation market is very tough on new startups, and a few early mistakes led to Harmony Airways' quick demise. The choice of a fleet consisting entirely of late 1980s Boeing 757s did not help with rising fuel costs. With planes seating 171 passengers, the Boeing 757-200 compared poorly to Westjet's 166-passenger Boeing 737-800. The 737 had significant cost advantages such as landing fees, fuel consumption, and other operating costs. The company was also impatient with its scheduling. They cancelled new routes after only a short time and did not let the routes mature with the customer base. The Vancouver to New York route is very profitable for Cathay Pacific. They use a Boeing 747-400 and now Boeing 777-300 on this route daily. Harmony Airways, thinking this would be a great route for them to compete in, invested significant dollars setting this route up with an enormous advertising campaign. Cathay Pacific lowered their fares and the route became unprofitable for Harmony Airways. The same scenario unfolded on their Oakland route. After significant money spent on advertising they failed to compete with Alaska Airlines and United Airlines. They then re-focused their attention on Hawaii and vacation destinations. With Westjet placing two Boeing 737-800 on the same route, Harmony again could not compete
founded - demised (age)
2002 - 2007 (5)
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