Hawaii was once epitomized by luxury air travel, and some of you are old enough to remember it fondly. In the golden days of aviation, a flight to the islands wasn’t just transportation; it was a journey filled with glamour, impeccable service, and an air of exclusivity. From the iconic Pan Am Clipper seaplanes of the 1930s to the widebody jets of the 1970s and 80s, Hawaii-bound flights were always an experience to savor.
Today, air travel to the islands often feels like a far cry from those halcyon days. What happened to the elegance that once defined Hawaii air travel, and who won the race to the bottom?
The golden age of Hawaii flights.
Flying to Hawaii starting in the mid-20th century was the height of sophistication. Airlines like TWA (lead photo) and Pan Am (below) led the way, offering unmatched service. For example, TWA’s Lockheed L-1011 jets symbolized a golden era of aviation comfort.
Passengers enjoyed gourmet meals, attentive cabin crews, and amenities like spacious seating, complimentary cocktails, and even a walk-up bar—all wrapped in a sense of aloha and excitement about Hawaii and travel.
Jeff at Beat of Hawaii vividly recalled these times: “Traveling to Hawaii was an amazing experience. Flight attendants wore Hawaiian uniforms, and meals included filet mignon carved tableside in First. Dessert was an ice cream sundae made just for you. It was an experience not to be missed.”
The decline of widebody flights.
The 1978 Airline Deregulation Act made air travel more affordable and competitive, leading to never-ending cost-cutting measures. By the 1990s, widebody planes like the Boeing 747 and McDonnell Douglas DC-10, once staples of Hawaii routes, began disappearing for many reasons. Airlines replaced them with highly cost-effective, narrow-body aircraft, greatly reducing passenger comfort.
Capt. Tom lamented this shift, noting, “I purposely pick flights with widebody planes like the 757-200 for the comfort of lie-flat seats. Narrow-body planes just don’t cut it for such a long journey.”
Experienced travelers continue to prefer widebody jets. Lori, another reader, shared, “I travel from San Diego to Maui via Honolulu just to enjoy Hawaiian Airlines’ A330 lie-flat seats. The nonstop A321 service to Maui, with regular recline seats, isn’t worth the price.”
First class is mostly in name only.
In today’s market, first class on Hawaii flights, more frequently than not, fails to meet expectations unless you’re on a widebody jet. Jeff, one of Beat of Hawaii’s editors, recently made headlines among United flight attendants by self-downgrading from first class to economy on a Hawaii flight. Why? He had more space and an extra seat in economy. Done deal. Ultimately, the flight attendants agreed with his decision.
“First class on a narrow-body plane just doesn’t deliver the comfort you’d expect,” Jeff explained. “Economy, with a whole row for two passengers, was a better choice.” His move amused United’s crew and highlighted the compromises many travelers make today.
Meanwhile, readers like AlohaMike reported mixed experiences. “My first-class seat on United had a broken tray table and wouldn’t hold its position. On the other hand, Hawaiian Airlines’ economy service to LAX was fantastic. Row 43, with nobody in the middle seat, felt like an upgrade compared to first class.” Based on years of experience, we concur On flying the A330-200 in economy.
Are airlines missing the mark on Hawaii?
The shift from luxury to mediocrity isn’t lost on travelers. Drew F. summarized it: “Frequent travelers and premium passengers will pay a premium for comfort, yet the focus seems to be on squeezing in more economy seats. Widebody planes like the A330 should be prioritized for routes where customers value comfort.”
Even frequent first-class flyers like Shirley question the value. “I’ve flown first class on Alaska and Hawaiian. While the suites on Hawaiian’s 787 are excellent, the overall experience across airlines has lost its charm.”
So who won and who lost?
That’s a hard question to answer. It’s easy to point fingers at the airlines and blame them for this conundrum. But wasn’t it driven by passenger demand for the lowest possible entry point price for Hawaii flights?
Case in point: The demand was incredible when Southwest arrived in Hawaii just over five years ago, offering introductory mainland-to-Hawaii prices of $49, $79, and $99. When Beat of Hawaii reported these, we were overwhelmed with visitors clamoring for cheap Hawaii flights.
So ultimately, just who is responsible?
This race to the bottom is largely defined by narrow-body planes and ancillary charges, along with seat-back entertainment and Wi-Fi. Flight attendants have told us they love these high tech features for helping keep passengers mindlessly occupied during the hours they are confined in the tightest possible seating. Does that leave us feeling like passengers in a digital playpen?
Can Hawaii air travel reclaim its elegance?
Is it possible for airlines to bring back the magic? Maybe. New planes like Hawaiian Airlines’ Dreamliner fleet and even American and United’s far-fetched planned adoption of Boom SST offer glimpses of hope.
However, true luxury seems increasingly reserved for niche widebody offerings on select routes only. And sad to say, it hasn’t gotten better, only worse, especially as the new extra long-range narrow-body planes come online almost immediately.
For now, nostalgia for the golden age of Hawaii air travel reminds some of what’s been lost. As airlines focus on profitability and travelers on bottom-line costs, many wonder if the journey to paradise can ever feel extraordinary again.
Who do you think won the race from elegance to cattle class in Hawaii air travel? Was it the airlines, the passengers, or perhaps no one at all? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
Lead image: TWA (Facebook).
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I started working forPan Am in 1967 as reservation control agent on PanaMac their computer system, worked in telephone reservation, at the airport as ticket agent, from there I went into charters warmed up to become Asst. Mgr. for charter marketing under Jim Fannan until that department was eliminated in 1985. Mr. Najeeb Hallaby was the last president. Very happy to hear considering revival of a very excellent air line. Go Pan Am.
It all started around the mid 2000’s. Aloha airlines pushed to get ETOPS certification for their 737 aircraft to fly mainland routes. All of a sudden you had the big airlines scrambling to put 757’s in service to service the outside islands. The level playing field was no longer level. Alaska and more recently Southwest flooded Hawaii with 737’s. If Hawaiian didn’t have the foresight to wee what was coming they would have been totally uncompetitive with a fleet of old 767’s. I like the widebody’s but they are not practical especially to the outside islands. You are comparing something that was not even
possible in the golden age when airlines were forced to use their longhaul fleet.
The same happened to United when they merged with Continental. I flew a lot on United in the 90’s and 2000’s. When the merge started to take hold you see the service degrade almost immediately. So instead of being served breakfast on board your breakfast bag was waiting for you to pick up in the jetway. Then I started getting stranded somewhere in Chicago or Denver or Texas because I was missing the connecting flights home to Southern California. I tried Delta and American but I wasn’t satisfied with their service. I tried Southwest and I’ve with them until this spring when we went to Seattle for an Alaskan cruise. Tried their First Class and found it wanting as compared to Lufthansa’s Business Class that I used to take for business in Europe. We’re going to Japan in Spring and I’ve already booked First Class seats to Honolulu where we will be joining family for the trip to Japan.
I think most people will go for the cheaper prices on airlines but here’s a warning for anyone traveling. I recently had the misfortune to fly on a Airbus 320. It was only a two hour flight but it was the most uncomfortable flight I have ever taken and I fly quite often. That plane has so little room that any tall or overweight passengers cannot move and normal sized people can only wiggle a little. If the person ahead of you puts his seat back you literally cannot get out of your seat. For the first time I was able to understand what would cause people with high degrees of agitation and low impulse control thresholds to get physically out of control on airplanes. I’ll never put myself through that again.
I remember in 1980 plus taking United from Seattle to Honolulu. The Hostesses were dressed in Mumu’s at the gate and passed out Hawaiian Juice to all the guests.Hawaiian music was playing. On the plane flight attendants were dressed in Hawaiian Clothes. We were given Beautiful Hawaiian Menus to choose our food from: Beef, Chicken or Mahimahi! A wonderful meal! You didn’t pay for seat upgrades. A wonderful experience.
We arrived in Hawaii (Kauai) this afternoon. The comments about UA are true. There was no difference between E+ going to Hawaii and E+ anywhere else in the world (and I have ridden E+ to various places around the world). I can remember not too many years ago when UA would have a contest to see who could guess the time where the airplane was half way between SFO and LIH. Not today. And please don’t get me started on what passed for food in cattle car on today’s flight. I don’t know what they served in 1st, but in cattle car you paid extra and got garbage for the money. Oh well, we’ll enjoy our time in Hawaii and then deal with UA on the way home.
Hi Ghery.
Have a great time on the Garden Island!
Aloha.
Back in the day, Western Airlines also had a “halfway contest:. The winner received a bottle of champagne!
Regular coach service included mai tais out of a “volcano” with dry ice. It was great.
A couple thoughts here… First, contrary to one of the comments posted in the story, the 757 is not a wide body aircraft. It’s more like an elongated 737.
Your story correctly focuses on the airline service race to the bottom. The ongoing shift to very long distance use of narrow body aircraft, more cramped seating, reduced services and a-la-carte pricing for just about everything has contributed to airline travel as little more than what traveling on old Greyhound bus is like. It’s hard to buy into airline promotional hype about “great new service” and “exciting new routes”. Welcome to getting stuffed into a block-long aluminum tube for a six hour flight to Hawaii. Ugh.
Good analogy, comparing today’s narrow body aircraft to a Greyhound bus, except the bus seats are wider and you sit 2+2. Too bad you can’t catch a bus to HI. At least It would be a little more comfortable!
I think what happened is a combination of things: More people wanted to travel to more far flung places. The price of oil started its stratasphereic climb and to keep flying affordable to the ‘masses’, more people had to fit in the plane. People had accepted ‘self-serve’ gas stations (‘service’ stations, often with mechanics on duty were disappearing) and the ‘more for less’ life style was the new ‘normal’. Go into a ‘brick and mortar’ store and try to get waited on? The new normal. People have to fly. Don’t like tight seats, lack of service, enduring long, uncomfortable flights?, don’t go. Keep in mind, the folks flying to HI on those nice big Pan Am birds were not you and me, they had money and could spend it. And, aviation fuel was a LOT cheaper, and there were fewer flights. If we paid the equivalent price in today’s dollars for what they paid back then, the planes would have a LOT of empty seats.
Dennis D you are so correct in your assessments. In 1980, less than 5% of the US population had flown. The population, then, was 226 million, today it’s 334 million. A lot more people in the US & on the planet. And everyone wants to go somewhere now. In 1980 HI was still exotic, now it’s just a plane ride away to paradise. The travel that was then is unsustainable for the airlines & flying public now. You want a hint of comfort, shell out the big bucks for Business or First.
United’s service has become unrecognizable. It’s just another domestic flight, period. Nothing special. Just another cattle car. You might get some flight attendants wearing kukui lei or a flower in their hair, but don’t count on it. Most SFO and LAX-based crews are doing turnarounds and aren’t even laying over.
That’s why I prefer Hawaiian. While their airport handling can be atrocious during irregular ops, Hawaiian’s cabin crew always bring the aloha.
Recently, I used one of my platinum upgrades for a flight from Maui to Long Beach. The seat recline was so slight and the footrest wasn’t working.
The food was not good – the meat had so much fat and gristle, I think there may have been three edible bites.
The flight attendants did not offer refills on beverages or coffee. I was walking up to the galley to be served…
Needless to say, I will not use my upgrades for this flight again. As Platinum, we can get an extra comfort seat 24 hours ahead of departure at no cost. I bring my lunch and enjoy the Starlink and movies.
Mahalo for all you do!
Could not have said it better.
First class is a thing of the past. Flying in the 80″s was a blast. I logged over 4,500,000 miles on the old American Airlines. The new ownership US Air which wouldn’t even keep their own name because of its lousy reputation. Unfortunately the cancer in US Air has now spread to American. I’ve found the only way to beat these guys is make sure what kind of plane I’ll be flying on, use seat guru.com to locate best seats, and always check $& points option. Plus pick one card for your travel needs, airline, car rental, hotel, everything to maximize points accrued for future travel. I suspect prices might come down if rewards programs were eliminated. Too many people flying up front for little of or no monetary investment. If it wasn’t for freight hauling the prices would be doubled. Stay alert be safe.
What happened to meals on Hawaii flights? Even something quite simple made the trip feel special. Now I feel like I need to pack a picnic just to survive. Pathetic situation.
I don’t think anyone “won” in this race to the bottom. Passengers are crammed in, and airlines are losing loyal customers.
Narrow-body planes may be efficient, but they and the airlines have taken all the joy out of long-haul travel. Hawaii deserves better.
Unfortunately, Hawaiian chose the Economy seating plan 3-3-3 (9 across) in their new 787s. Better airlines choose 2-4-2 (8 across) across seating.
Hawaiian gets an extra seat in every row this way, but seats are narrower.
For me, Wi-Fi and entertainment are okay, but they don’t make up for the cramped seats and lack of aloha spirit on most flights.
The “digital playpen” analogy is spot on. It feels like airlines are more focused on distracting us than providing any actual comfort.
I see two drivers for this. First the consumers voted with their picket book they wanted low prices and did not care about value for money. Second short termism of the markets have led to the rise of control in airlines by cost accountants who are as blind to the difference between value creation and value destruction as the marketing fraternity are blind to dealing with marketing return on investment. Who won the race to the bottom? I would say TWA then Pan Am then the discounters. The takeaway from this is if you ignore value and return you won’t be in business long. I like flying back from London on JAL via Tokyo as their value creation like ANA’s is nowhere near as diluted as it is with US or many European carriers like British.
You get what you paid for
I recently flew round trip from Sacramento to Maui first class on Hawaiian. To be honest it was not worth it.. first class was full on both flights. No welcome drink was offered even though it’s on the service list. I asked for some water and the flight attendant was very reluctant.
The service was lackluster with the flight attendants hiding in the galley for the most part. The other strange thing was the breakfast menu on the outbound had two choices with pork in both of them. As a vegetarian I couldn’t eat either and it’s like they don’t care about people of Jewish or Islamic faith either since pork is something they don’t eat.
Coach was half empty on both legs and it would have been much better in Coach than the crowded first class. I was on the aisle seat and this young man kept ordering drinks and going to the bathroom at least 5 times and each time I had to get up.
Overseas I fly business in a 1 2 1 configuration… First class in the USA is the pits.
So… just one thing: The 757-200 is actually a Narrow Body Aircraft and the 747-200 and 747-400 are indeed Wide Body Aircraft. “Capt. Tom” is mistaken. BTW: There is no longer any USA-flag carriers utilizing the B747 to Hawaii due to age and high fuel consumption. Sad, but true. Aloha
He was probably referring to the 767s like Hawaiian and United used to fly. United’s merger with Continental took the 767s away from the Hawaii run. I sat next to a Captain who said it also decreased the cargo capacity to Hawaii on United.
The driver and copilot were the leisure traveling public and the advent of internet video communication which was accelerated by the shut-down in 2020. Ala-cart pricing was very attractive and startups that employed it prospered. My buddy flies from SW Fl to Denver all the time for less than $100 each way-nonstop. Businesses realized they cold substitute Zoom for 90% of their in-person trips.