By The Huffington Post News Editors
HONOLULU (AP) — Larry Ellison bought a small commuter airline in Hawaii in part to ensure it would continue service to the island that is mostly owned by the Oracle Corp. CEO, according to a representative for the billionaire’s personal investment company.
The danger that Island Air could go out of business pushed Ellison’s company to prepare contingency plans in case the airline failed, Lawrence Investments LLC Vice President Paul Marinelli said this week in a telephone interview. One option considered was to sign contracts with other interisland carriers to provide flights to Lanai.
Ellison purchased 98 percent of the land on Lanai from Castle and Cooke Inc. last year.