As with many earlier air carriers, Western Airlines began in 1925 as a mail carrier service. Based in California, Western went through many stages over its sixty plus year existence. When it began serving as a commercial airline, it initially focused on the Western United States. In 1969, it began offering service to Honolulu and Hilo with high end service which they called The Islander routes. During its prime in the 1970s and 1980s, Western increased service to Hawaii and also offered flights to Kahului and Kona. In 1986, Western entered into a merger with Delta Airlines, and the Western Airlines name was retired.
