HONOLULU -- A day after Aloha Airlines cargo business closed one company sent in a 727 jet to begin interisland cargo service.

The same company that is buying Aloha's Contract Services Division, which handles ground services for 20 airlines in the state, Pacific Air Cargo prepared to fly two runs overnight.

PAC plans to take cargo to all the neighbor islands. The company may bring in a second interisland cargo aircraft if there is a need.

At Pacific Air Cargo off Lagoon Drive, truckload after truckload of cargo arrived at mid-afternoon bound for Kauai, Maui and the Big Island. With just a day's notice the company leased a 727 and will begin interisland cargo service to fill the void left by Aloha cargo's sudden closure.

"We're prepared to fly it interisland and do as much as we can to alleviate the problem, so at least get some relief," Pacific Air Cargo President and owner Beti Ward said.

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PAC Sends Plane | Shipping Challenge

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Pacific Air Cargo already flies a leased 747 to Los Angeles daily. It also flies cargo to Guam and American Samoa once a week.

Now it is leasing a 727 from Kaletta Air for interisland service.

"The schedule is still being worked out. It depends on the demand, what people need," Ward said.

Meantime, Pacific Air Cargo said it is still on track to take over Aloha's Contract Services Division, which handles check-in, baggage and other ground services for 20 airlines. These employees were checking in passengers for an Omni Air flight to Las Vegas at midmorning.

"The customers love the people. They said right off the bat, they're doing a great job for us, we want to keep these people that are working on our account, and that's our goal, to keep these people working these accounts," Ward said.

Ward said that the roughly 1000 employees in contract services will keep their jobs and some may actually get raises, because Ward said most of her company's nonunion pay scales are higher than what Aloha paid.

Pacific Air Cargo paid about $2.2 million to buy the contract services and is set to take over operations on Monday or sooner, if a bankruptcy trustee approves an earlier transfer.

There is late word that Aloha's primary lender, GMAC, is refusing to pay salary and benefits for contract services employees. If so, Ward said she will cover their pay until a deal can be reached.