Improvement isn’t coming to the ranking of Hawaii Airports and here’s why. This according to the just out 2023 JD Power survey.
Improvement isn’t coming to the ranking of Hawaii Airports and here’s why. This according to the just out 2023 JD Power survey.
Hmmmm… I dunno. I live on Maui and fly in and out quite often, frequently connecting in Honolulu. I don’t get what all the fuss is about. Both airports are clean. Both have places to eat and buy booze, food, snacks, souvenirs. Staff are friendly. Security is way faster than most mainland airports (I have TSA PreCheck). Both have lots of space to sit and wait. Ground transport zones are plentiful and near baggage areas. I think we Americans have become so bored and sedentary that a little bit of walking and waiting without constant entertainment and snacking seems like a travesty to us. Airports are for safe, predictable entry / exit from aircraft and transit in and out of the area. The rest is icing on the cake.
I fly from/to KOA frequently. It really needs cleaning. The airport should hire people to pick up debris and clean the surfaces. I feel like I need a shower after passing though. The concessionaires are the worst. Prime example: the always-crowded Hawaiian Air first class “lounge”, with far too few seats/tables and its third-world-class amenities. Throw in the roaring box fans in the public bathrooms. Altogether, sad.
Aloha! Just got back from OGG around 3 weeks ago. Sure, the departures area could use a pressure wash or a coat of paint, but the airport is perfectly usable. In my opinion, spending a pile of money would do Zero towards making my trip or vacation more enjoyable.
How does one spend billons of dollars on upgrading an airport (HNL) and be ranked in the worst in the US? And the Maui airport was also ranked the worst in the US for medium size airports. It appears that the government in Hawaii has many issues to deal with not just fires destroying Lahaina. At what point do the citizens of Hawaii call for a special election to replace the governor on Hawaii and all elected officials in Maui. Unless something is not done to elect government officials who are qualified the issues are only going to get worst.
Another major issue in Hawaii is the minimum wage. It is currently $12/hour and will go up to $14/hour in 2024. The state needs to move faster in getting the minimum wage up to $19 hour.
Minimum wage has nothing to do with Airport mismanagement. Guess again.
The work on this airport has been going on sense I came thru in the 60 and 70s. same as ever.
Building Industry Hawaii had article about the completed and ongoing construction projects at Daniel K. Inouye Int’l Airport:
The DKI runway improvement project you mentioned in your blog
post widened runway 8L from 150 feet to 200 feet and rehabbed the pavement.This project started in October 2022 and cost 111.2 million dollars.
I figure that the architects that came up with the new terminal were either drunk, on drugs, or maybe both for that design! An incredible amount of dead air space that must be cooled at all times because of the huge sun exposure and to say that it lacks real amenities is a huge understatement! And the real kicker is that as bad as this terminal is, if you are flying into LAX you get a giant surprise in just how long it takes to get from the gates that Hawaiian uses to the baggage claim area and please do not insult us by saying that there is a shuttle service that will take you there as they are few and far between. Nice looking versus functional are two very different things as the Hawaiian DOT has demonstrated beyond all imagination!
Amazing how status-quo is fine. All the Hawaiian airports scream of 1960’s and 70’s with band aid approaches at Everything. Sure HNL has one new concourse. In all honest Every part of HNL outside the new concourse needs to be turn down, rebuilt and footprints on buildings adjusted for better use of the space. OGG feels depressing – at check in and in the terminals. Compare this to developing nation airports – Hawaii is way way way behind the curve. Sadly, nothing will change until the state moves it out of DoT and hires people who have built and run airports that are successful.
On our way home from HNL last October I was talking to an architect
who told me that HNL was the worst designed airport facility
that he had ever seen.
The Car Rental Center is a prime example of the Problem at HNL. A brand new flashy center with walls of waterfall and no direct access to terminals. It is crazy you have to push all your bags into the elevator go down to the 1st floor push it over the bumpy herb across the road, over the bumpy herb and up the slope through the doors, push it into the elevator and then push it out and try to find an Agriculture scanner this is open and will allow you to use it. As someone with mobility issues I hate HNL. The gardens are cool and the open layout is cool but the facilities and the layout are terrible. Maybe the HART will go through the airport without stopping, that would be consistent.