Aloha, Electric Airlines: Hawaii Is First in Line

Surf Air Mobility and BETA Technologies partner to launch the first commercial electric passenger airline service in the US, starting in Hawaii

7 Apr 2026

Surf Air Mobility and BETA Technologies have announced a commercial partnership aimed at establishing the first scheduled electric passenger airline service in the United States, with Hawaii selected as the launch market.

Under the agreement, announced on 12 March 2026, Surf Air Mobility has placed a firm order for 25 of BETA's all-electric ALIA aircraft, with options for a further 75. The deal also designates Surf Air Mobility as the launch operator for BETA's passenger aircraft and includes the establishment of a BETA-authorised maintenance and repair centre in Hawaii, alongside the deployment of BETA's charging infrastructure across the airline's fleet network.

The choice of Hawaii reflects the state's unusual commercial conditions for electric aviation: short inter-island routes, elevated jet fuel costs, and Surf Air Mobility's existing airport relationships. The company plans to begin with cargo operations through its Mokulele Airlines service before transitioning to passenger flights, pending FAA certification of the passenger variant of the ALIA aircraft. Demonstration flights are scheduled for later this year.

BETA says the ALIA aircraft has logged more than 100,000 nautical miles in test flights across a range of conditions, including day, night, visual, and instrument flight rules operations.

Surf Air Mobility chief executive Deanna White said the partnership was focused on putting "the first paying passenger on a next-generation electric aircraft." BETA chief executive Kyle Clark said Hawaii's short-haul economics were "immediately favorable for electric operations."

The structure of the deal is notable for its breadth. Rather than a straightforward aircraft purchase, it integrates procurement, maintenance infrastructure, charging networks, and a joint regulatory engagement strategy. This reflects an acknowledgment that commercial electric aviation has stalled elsewhere partly due to gaps in operational readiness rather than aircraft performance alone.

Whether the partnership can hold to its timeline will depend in large part on the pace of FAA certification for the passenger ALIA variant, a process that has proven unpredictable across the broader electric aircraft sector. The cargo-first approach in Hawaii may provide a more forgiving entry point, but the transition to revenue passenger service will ultimately test whether the economics hold beyond the conditions that make the islands an unusually favourable case.