United Airlines immediately matched American's sale fares in its reservations computers. Major airlines usually match each other's discounts where they travel the same routes but the others had not posted new fares late this morning. There was a similar fare sale this time last year.

On Hawaii-West Coast routes, existing discount fares are cheaper than the new sale fares.

However the sale does make tickets cheaper on the longer hauls. The sale fares are available for tickets purchased through April 14 if used for travel up to Sept. 6.

The sale's first phase, good for travel through May 5, not only has the biggest discounts, it also applies the same sale fare regardless of the day of the week, said Tim Smith, a spokesman at American Airlines' headquarters in Dallas.

Usually, weekend fares are higher than sale fares days on other days of the week.

Fares go up for the second phase, for travel May 6 through Sept. 6, and there are peak and off-peak fares depending on the day of the week, but fares are still cheaper than those previously available, Smith said.

American is offering Honolulu-New York round trips for $577 in the first phase, a 29 percent cut from the airline's previously posted fare of $811 for the same period. For the second phase, the New York fare is $627, down 23 percent.

The Honolulu-Chicago sale fare for round trips is $564 for travel through May 5, down 22 percent, and $613 for travel May 6 through Sept. 6, down 23 percent. (Some markets may have airport use fees of $3 or more.)

Weekend peak fares in the second phase are as much as $60 higher than off-peak round trips.

Smith said the main reason for the sale is that American had a highly successful 50 percent sale to rebuild business after a pilots' strike threat, but that sale was heavily used for spring break/Easter travel and American has plenty of summer seats to fill.

For travel among the 48 contiguous states, discounts run as high as 50 percent in the new "Spring Fever" sale, American said.