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Fares said key to Travel industry representatives are lauding Hawaiian Airlines Inc.'s plan to start daily nonstop service between Honolulu and San Diego, but they say a competitive fare with Los Angeles flights will be key to the route's long-term success.
Hawaiian’s success
in San Diego
In the wake of other airlines'
failures, travel agents say the route's
prices must be comparable
to those for L.A.By Rob Perez
Star-BulletinHawaiian Air announced yesterday that it will use widebody DC-10-30 aircraft, with a configuration for 282 passengers, to launch the service June 15.
It will be the first major carrier to fly regularly scheduled nonstop flights between the two markets since Delta Airlines stopped doing so in 1994.
Several travel agents in Hawaii and San Diego said they believe Hawaiian needs to price the flights competitively with the Los Angeles market to sustain the service over the long haul.
"There is a demand for nonstop service," said Judi Adolpho, travel agent with Morris Murdock Travel in Laie. "How big it is, I'm not sure. It'll depend on price."
Marilyn Paulson, an agent with Carefree Vacations in San Diego, said some people might be willing to pay as much as $100 more for the convenience of flying out of San Diego instead of Los Angeles.
But considering that Delta and other carriers had trouble filling planes on a nonstop route, Paulson wondered whether demand will be sufficient to fill a widebody jet daily.
"I don't know how long that will last," she said. "Other airlines have tried it. We'll see if there's more demand this time."
Hawaii tour packager Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays discontinued its San Diego-Honolulu direct service in October. The weekend service, which began in May 1998, used Boeing 757s chartered from American Trans Air.
Paul Casey, Hawaiian's chief executive, said it was too soon to say whether the Honolulu-San Diego fare would be comparable to prices for Honolulu-Los Angeles flights. But given that San Diego has such a large population base -- it is the second largest city in California -- and a booming economy, Casey said he is confident the market is ready for nonstop service. He said the flights will create new demand for travel to the islands and not rely on taking business from carriers flying out of Los Angeles.
"We believe there's a whole new market we can generate," Casey said. "If all you're trying to do is cherry-pick somebody else's market share, that inevitably causes downward pressure on pricing."
Casey said Hawaiian would price the service to be profitable and competitive.
Joseph Toy, president of Hospitality Advisors LLC, said he believes the fares would be comparable to Hawaii-Los Angeles fares, creating incentives for San Diego travelers to fill the seats.
"If pricing is not an issue, why not go where the best departure point is," Toy said. "People will be looking for convenience."
Hawaiian's announcement follows moves by other airlines to serve the islands from secondary markets on the West Coast.
Aloha Airlines in February began daily service between Oakland, Calif., and Honolulu. It also began a daily Maui-Oakland flight.
In May, American Airlines began daily flights between Honolulu and San Jose, Calif.
The carriers launched the routes in part because passengers increasingly have shown a preference for flying from less-crowded airports. A healthy U.S. economy also has contributed to growing numbers of tourists from the mainland.
Julie King, an Aloha spokeswoman, said the airline's Oakland flights were profitable by the second month, unusual for start-up service. Hoping to mirror that success, Aloha is exploring the possibility of flying to secondary Southern California airports once it gets delivery next year of three new Boeing 737-700s, according to King. Aloha plans to take delivery of its three new planes in March and May.
Aloha is considering flying to Southern California airports in San Diego, Orange County, Ontario, Long Beach and Burbank, King said.
Two of the new leased aircraft will serve the Southern California market, while the third will be dedicated to a Pacific destination that has not been named yet, she said. King declined to say how Hawaiian's new service might affect Aloha's plans.
San Diego also was a market targeted by partners trying to form a new airline to serve Hawaii and the West Coast.
The partners, doing business as Trans Pacific Airlines, said they intended to operate two leased DC-10-30 jets on daily San Diego-Honolulu and Portland-Honolulu flights. The group subsequently withdrew its application for federal permission to fly, but said they intended to reapply by early July and wanted to launch service in the last quarter of this year.
Alan Lidow, one of the partners, said today that completing the financing is taking longer than anticipated, but the group still is trying to begin service by year's end.
He said Hawaiian's announcement will not change the partners' plan to serve San Diego. The market is large enough for two carriers to provide daily service profitably, Lidow said. "(Hawaiian) should do very well in that market, as we expect to do," he said.
Gov. Ben Cayetano was among those who lauded Hawaiian's San Diego plans, which would add more than 100,000 inbound seats to the state annually. The service will be a boost for Hawaii tourism, Cayetano said.
"San Diego's robust economy is driven by its expanding high-technology and biotech companies," the governor said. "Those are the kinds of visitors we want to attract to the islands."
Casey said Hawaiian is continuing to look at other cities on the West Coast as part of a global search for new markets.
"When the economics are right, that's when we decide we'll fly," he said.
