HONOLULU – Hawaiian Airlines today announced it would adjust flight frequencies between Hawai‘i and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport (HND) at the end of March due to slowing travel demand attributed to the COVID-19 virus.
Effective March 28 through April 29, the airline will temporarily suspend flights that operate three-times-weekly between Kona International Airport (KOA) on the Island of Hawai‘i and HND, and four-times-weekly between Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) and HND. At the same time, Hawaiian will launch an additional daily nonstop service between HNL and HND as announced in November of last year.
“Japan is a vitally important market for our airline, and we have been looking forward to launching our third nonstop flight between Honolulu and Haneda, which offers more convenient connecting times for our guests,” said Peter Ingram, president and CEO at Hawaiian Airlines. “Unfortunately, the spread of COVID-19 beyond Asia has diminished near-term global travel demand, so we are balancing some of our Haneda capacity by suspending for about a month our hybrid service between Haneda and Honolulu and Kona.”
Below are the last flights scheduled to operate prior to the suspension (all times local):
| FLIGHT | ROUTE | DEPARTS | ARRIVES | SERVICE ENDS | SERVICE RESUMES |
| HA851 | KOA-HND | 5:15 p.m. | 10 p.m. (+1) | Mar-27 | May-01 |
| HA852 | HND-KOA | 11:55 p.m. | 12:05 p.m. | Mar-27 | May-01 |
| HA855 | HNL-HND | 5:20 p.m. | 10 p.m. (+1) | Mar-26 | Apr-30 |
| HA856 | HND-HNL | 11:55 p.m. | 11:55 a.m. | Mar-28 | May-02 |
The new Honolulu-Haneda frequency begins with the inaugural flight on March 28. HA863 will depart HNL at 12:30 p.m., with a scheduled 5:10 p.m. arrival at HND the following day. The return flight, HA864, will depart HND at 8:15 p.m. and arrive at HNL at 8:10 a.m. the same day, giving guests ample time to enjoy their first day on O‘ahu or connect to neighboring Hawaiian Islands.
Once the changes take place, Hawaiian’s Japan-Hawai‘i network of 35 weekly flights will include three daily nonstop flights connecting Honolulu and Tokyo: two flights serving HND and one flight serving Narita International Airport (NRT). The airline also offers daily service between Honolulu and Osaka’s Kansai International Airport (KIX), four weekly flights between Honolulu and Fukuoka Airport (FUK), and three weekly flights between Honolulu and Sapporo’s New Chitose Airport (CTS).
Upon restoring the suspended Haneda flights, Hawaiian will operate 42 weekly flights between Japan and Hawai‘i.
The airline is assisting guests impacted by its network revisions by offering re-accommodations on alternative flights or providing refunds. Hawaiian is also providing flexibility for guests concerned about potential changes to their travel plans due to the evolving global COVID-19 situation and who may need to make alternative arrangements.
Source: newsroom.hawaiianairlines.com