Southwest Hawaii flight plans almost remain to this day a secret. Here s our update as of late 2015.
Classified information was let out of the bag last year and it still appears certain that SWA will have flights to Hawaii. That s great news for future Hawaii vacation deals. With their flight crew and fleet of 737-800 planes ETOPS certified for over water service, and other factors we uncovered below, this Maxwell Smart thinks it s a sure thing.
Beat of Hawaii predictions:
Expect see Southwest Hawaii service announced in 2016 with service to commence thereafter. That via direct service or possible airline acquisition.
Southwest will be limited to flying to Hawaii from the west coast. Even going slightly inland isn t feasible with their aircraft.
Oakland will be the primary mainland departure city. The next most likely Hawaii gateway is Los Angeles.
We do not anticipate Southwest offering inter-island service, at least initially.
Much more is possible starting in 2017 with Southwest s new aircraft.
In July 2014, Southwest CEO Gary Kelly announced plans for the airline s continued expansion. In regards to Hawaii, while more legwork is needed to commence Hawaii flights, he said it wouldn t take years to start flights to the islands.
We have work to do before we can fly to Hawaii, which I doubt we’ll be able to keep a secret.” Gary Kelly
Southwest Hawaii service has still not been announced. Here s why:
In the past two years Southwest growth stopped. The company put a halt on expansion which is now resuming. Their number of flights actually decreased slightly while the number of seat miles was flat. Southwest s acquisition of AirTran was more complicated than originally thought and the 737 s they acquired had to be taken out of service to be revamped.
Allegiant Hawaii service began, and while not a major player, they brought with them some initial uncertainty as to broader Hawaii flight pricing. Southwest waited to see whether the discount carrier s entry would have any impact on the other airlines Hawaii ticket prices. Thereafter, Allegiant did not have great success with the islands which may have caused further concern for any Hawaii prospects including Southwest and Virgin America .
Competition between west coast cities and Hawaii is strong on Hawaiian and Alaska. which doesn t offer much opportunity for the higher airfares that typically attract a new player like Southwest. This issue is exacerbated to some degree by low fuel prices.
Some internal systems, such as Southwest s reservation system, may require updating to accommodate Hawaii flights.
The current aircraft are configured for more seats than competitor Alaska Airlines. This may present weight issues for Hawaii flights. That problem will be alleviated when Southwest begins to take delivery of their longer range and capacity 737 MAX fleet starting in 2017.
What we know:
SWA has a fleet of 737–800 planes ETOPS certified for over water service.
Southwest flight crews received over water training needed in part to fly to Hawaii.
2015 plans remain significant. Southwest will take delivery of 33 Boeing 737-800 aircraft this year. That will provide added capacity needed for possible Hawaii flights.
Allegiant did a belly flop in Hawaii. While operating with a completely different business model than Southwest, this gave indication that price alone would not dictate in the Hawaii aviation market.
