Aloha Airlines, which shut down its passenger service last month, has selected a Los Angeles company as the top bidder for its 1,100-employee aviation services division.

Pacific Air Cargo, which has extensive operations in Hawai'i and Samoa, offered to pay more than $2 million for Aloha's contract services division, which provides customer service, baggage service, ticket agents and ramp agents her for carriers like Japan Airlines and United Airlines, people familiar with bidding process said.

The airline is also attempting to auction its profitable 300-employee air cargo division. Bidding on the cargo unit will resume tomorrow.

The bids required approval from the federal bankruptcy court, which will hold a hearing in Oakland, Calif. on Thursday.

Aloha, the state's second largest carrier, filed for bankruptcy protection on March 20 after it lost more than $120 million during the past two years.

The company shutdown its passenger operations and laid off 1,900 workers 11 days later, citing the soaring cost of fuel and losses from the interisland fare war.