“HA” — the airline code, that is — is no more, and it’s no laughing matter. The historic Hawaiian Airlines callsign, used on tickets and in chatter between pilots and air traffic controllers for generations, was retired Wednesday. Now, Alaska Airlines’ “AS” is used on Hawaiian flights’ boarding passes and airport displays, reflecting the homegrown company’s acquisition by the Alaska Air Group and their official merger under a single operating certificate.

More big changes took place Wednesday, chief among them appointment of a new Hawaiian Air CEO: Diana Birkett Rakow, the first woman to take the helm. Hawaiian Air passengers must brace themselves, though: The airline is also retiring its striking, shades-of-blue uniform, patterned with botanical images by Native Hawaiian designer Sig Zan

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