Southwest Axes Hawaii Plans

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For those of you who have been waiting, it appears that Southwest Airlines has given up on the idea of serving Hawaii either directly or with a U.S. code share partner.

Southwest and its Pilots’ Association have just reached a tentative accord. Contained is a specific provision that the airline will not enter into any code-share agreements for domestic service.

Their decision might not be all bad.  As a reader of Southwest’s blog wrote:

“The thought of being on a Southwest jet on a trip as long as to Hawaii sends chills down my spine. I can’t take more than a few hours all cramped up like that. Stick to what you do best with those high frequency, relatively short flights.”

Southwest’s Code-Share History in Hawaii:

ATA had a Hawaii code share agreement with Southwest until its bankruptcy auspiciously a year ago this week.  As recently as last November, Southwest indicated that they were still looking for new code-share partners with whom they could serve the Hawaii market.

The other reasons Southwest is not Hawaii bound:

  • Fleet is without planes capable of mainland to Hawaii travel (Alaska for example, uses 737-800, which Southwest does not have).
  • Extended over water certification (ETOPS), which requires both training and equipment.  Certification goes with the carrier, not just the plane.  Southwest has neither.
  • Desirable Hawaii routes that are 737 accessible are limited and have strong players.  You can’t get much further away than the West Coast and still make it to Hawaii with that type plane.  One route that could be popular is John Wayne (Orange County) which was previously served by Aloha.

Final Thought:

The entire process of adding Hawaii routes is a time-consuming, expensive and complicated undertaking that may well not be in Southwest’s best interests at this difficult time.  What do you think?

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2 Comments

  1. Waxer (3 years ago)

    Disappointed to say the least. Having Southwest in the market would bring some sanity to the fares (especially in regard to United).

    I’ve flown an Aloha 737 from Oakland to Honolulu, and also Southwest 737 flights from Oakland to Philadelphia nonstop. While it’s nice to have a bigger jet to wander around in, I’d much rather pay a more competitive fare to the islands.

    Aloha

  2. Napili Jay (3 years ago)

    I flew ATA for a few years to Maui while they were code-sharing with SWA. ATA definitely wasn’t SWA, but at least it was an SWA fare. This past year I flew US Air. What a nightmare! The price was ridiculous, late flights, lost luggage – the list goes on. I think it would be a worthwhile investment to get the equipment and training necessary to fly to Hawaii. I’m sure there are 300, 500, or 700 models of the 737 just waiting for Southwest to scoop up at a cheap price (who else is using all those 737′s from Aloha and ATA)? And it would be pretty easy to get passengers on flights to/from Hawaii from well-established hubs in LA or Phoenix. Even with a weak economy I think SWA could steal a significant amount of business from their competitors, just as they did when they started serving the east coast.