Meet the Hawaiian Airlines engineer turning historic aircraft into LEGO art

By Hawaiian Airlines

Aug 19, 2026

By day, Ashton S. helps keep Hawaiian Airlines’ aircraft cabins in top shape, designing, maintaining and troubleshooting cabin systems as a Honolulu-based interior engineer. By night, he builds detailed replicas of the airline’s most iconic aircraft from his dining room table, one LEGO brick at a time.

Through Oct. 11, Oʻahu visitors can experience Ashton’s hobby up close when visiting Bishop Museum’s “Aloha Bricks ’26: Stories of Hawaiʻi” exhibit, where five of his custom-built LEGO aircraft models are on display. The models pay homage to five aircraft types that played pivotal roles in Hawaiian’s nearly century-long history: the 1929 Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker, a Douglas DC-3 and DC-9, a Boeing 717 and 787 Dreamliner.

The “Aloha Bricks” display marries Ashton’s longtime interest in taking things apart and rebuilding them or turning the pieces into something new. “I’ve always been into creating things,” he said. “Whether it was building train tracks across my floor as a kid or building LEGO models, I’ve always liked figuring out how things work.”

That love of tinkering led Ashton to earn a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, before starting his career at Hawaiian. Now, he spends his days reenvisioning and finding solutions for aircraft cabin furnishings and materials, including seats, galley appliances, wall placards, stowage bins and lighting.

As he works, he draws on the problem-solving skills he developed from building with LEGO bricks as a child.