Hawaiian Adds Winglets to Some of Its 767 Fleet

(MoneyWatch)  We've already seen Aviation Partners Boeing winglets becomes a "must-have" on the next generation 737s, and the 757s aren't far behind. Now that a 767 winglet has been developed, it seems to be gaining some traction as well. Hawaiian has announced it will put winglets on some of its 767 fleet.

These monstrous 11-foot tall winglets may make a 767 look like an A330, but they also, according to Hawaiian, will save 5% in fuel burn. For an airline like Hawaiian, that can mean 300,000 gallons of fuel per year. That's nearly $1 million a year per aircraft.

Hawaiian currently flies 18 767s, and they're only putting these on eight to start with options for seven more. Why would they not put these on all their planes if the savings are so large? Well, fourteen of those planes are extended range (ER) versions while the other four are not. These winglets are apparently only meant for the ER fleet - probably because the savings are greater on longer flights and they can help extend the range.

But why isn't it going on the entire ER fleet? My guess is that it's because it's not going to be cheap. I don't know much about winglet pricing, but one estimate has the 737 winglets costing $725,000. You can assume that the 767 winglets will cost more, and that's going to require capital, something that's not easy to come by these days.