This is quite an unusual day in Hawaii air travel. Two new Hawaii routes were announced in one day. Both are from Southern California and reopen connections that failed before.
Alaska Airlines plans to fly nonstop from Orange County and Burbank to Honolulu, restoring links that Aloha Airlines once flew, and in Orange County’s case, that even United tried and couldn’t keep alive.
For Orange County, this marks the third attempt at nonstop service to Hawaii. Aloha tried first. United followed. Both failed. Now, Alaska is betting it can finally make the route work.
This is big news for travelers. It means no more long drives up the 405 to LAX, no more fighting parking shuttles and terminal crowds to start a vacation. But for the airlines that tried before, this route has been brutal. The question isn’t whether travelers want it.
At Beat of Hawaii, we have had hundreds of comments asking for just this route. The question is whether this service actually makes sense in the long run.
When Aloha and United tried first.
Aloha Airlines launched nonstop flights to Honolulu in 2000 using Boeing 737-700s, betting that travelers south of Los Angeles would fill seats to Hawaii. They did. But by early 2005, bankruptcy forced Aloha to cancel both its Orange County and Burbank routes. Three years later, Aloha itself was history.
Continental later picked up the Orange County route, and after the merger, United kept it briefly before ending service in 2012. Nine years later, United tried again during the pandemic with 737-700s, only to drop the route again in early 2023 after less than two years. The pattern never changed. Orange County loved the flights. The airlines’ accountants, however, did not.
The runway problem nobody likes to talk about.
John Wayne Airport wasn’t exactly built for Hawaii flights. The main runway stretches just 5,700 feet, less than half the length of LAX’s. That’s barely enough for a fully loaded jet heading 2,500 miles across the Pacific.
The 737-700 United flew had up to 126 seats. Whether all of them could be sold on every flight depended on fuel load, weather, and baggage weight, the kind of operational issues that can impact profitability.
Alaska’s bold timing.
Alaska suddenly isn’t easing into Hawaii expansion; it’s jumping. Within a day, the airline announced not one but two new Hawaii routes from Southern California: Burbank–Honolulu and now Orange County–Honolulu. That significantly increases its dominance, given the number of West Coast gateways Alaska uses for Hawaii.
It’s a bold move when others are retreating. Southwest cut up to 30% of its Hawaii flights earlier this year. United walked away from this exact route. Yet Alaska is doubling down, just as it completes its purchase of Hawaiian Airlines. Alaska is going in a different direction. That’s either brilliant or it is not. Time will tell.
The missing details.
Neither of Alaska’s new routes appears in booking systems yet. No fares have been published. No start dates have been filed. Reliable aviation industry sources have confirmed the airline’s plans, but official schedules remain unfiled, a more typical approach when gauging market interest before committing resources.
Until Alaska opens bookings, key questions remain. Does the airline have enough 737 MAX 8 aircraft ready to support this expansion? Can those jets profitably operate out of SNA’s short runway without limiting passenger loads? And how much margin does Alaska really have left for another Hawaii gamble while integrating Hawaiian Airlines?
The financial reality.
If Alaska follows its usual pattern, we’ll likely see introductory fares around $199–$299 one-way. But sustaining the route will require higher pricing, maybe closer to $400 per seat, to make the numbers work.
We’ll see what the premium will be for the convenience of Orange County. Ease of access clearly has a price. Whether Orange County travelers will pay it is just one of Alaska’s multi-million-dollar questions.
What’s at stake.
If the new SNA–Honolulu flight works, it further validates Alaska’s bet on smaller West Coast airports as the next frontier for Hawaii travel. If it fails, it exposes the limits of narrow-body planes on Hawaii ocean legs and raises questions about how much bandwidth Alaska really has available as it absorbs Hawaiian Airlines.
Alaska isn’t just testing a route. It’s testing exactly how its post-acquisition ambitions match reality.
Would you pay extra to fly Hawaii from Orange County instead of driving to LAX? And do you think Alaska can finally make this route work after Aloha and United both failed?
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Any update on the flights from John Wayne Airport to Hawaii?
Absolutely will pay a bit more than making that drive, parking, bad terminal situations to fly out of SNA, only 10 minutes from our home!
Hope this becomes a truth in reality and not just a tease at nothing.
Alaska can try SNA but I rather fly southwest from Long Beach to Honolulu, suprised Alaska didn’t come back to LGB to compete with Southwest or add more HA flights from LGB
I work SNA trips a lot as a flight attendant with AS. That runway is short and have experienced many hard landings there, so it’ll b interesting to see if the reports of AS flying SNA-HNL. Nothing yet official on our company emails. I have talked with my AS pilots to ask about the short runways and necessary fuel. They have all said the planes would be weight restricted and may have to leave seats unsold. I’d love to work these flights as I live just down the street. I saw Aloha and United come and go with their 700’s. AS 800MAX could be a challenge making the weight of the larger aircraft work.
I wonder if they will be able to fly full load out of SNA when there are strong headwinds.
I used to live in Pasadena and Burbank is an under-appreciated gem. Most stress-free airport I’ve ever been through regularly in terms of TSA and such. I’m unsure the route will work, but I would definitely be willing to pay a bit more to fly in and out of there instead of LAX.
Oh My Goodness, Yes…… in the old days we would fly out of SNA to Hawaii. So sad when Aloha went bust. for decades we would go up to the Crown Plaza to spend the night before our flight the next morning. No way would we want to deal with that traffic to be at the airport at 6;30 am. From S. Orange County. Yes , we would pay extra to have that convenience. Except, is it going to b those tiny airplanes…… ?? Oh well, if it is , I guess I’ll survive… 🙂
Live in Orange County and been flying from Long Beach direct to Maui for years. Only 20 minutes from SNA and Long Beach is a small airport. Price is good and this is a very easy airport to get in and out of. No need for anyone to go up to LAX to get to Hawaii.
Even if Alaska took a loss like the other airlines in these routes they would just make up the difference in raising prices on more popular routes. I think the term is Monopolization just like some popular coffee company did.
Yes I would use the SNA to HNL route more. Avoiding LAX at any cost.
Ontario would be a better choice for all airlines and passengers.
Alaska already has a daily flight from ONT-HNL, enjoy the easier option from LAX
Hi, I live in Palm Springs. I would most certainly go to Orange County for my Honolulu flights. Going to LAX is just a nightmare. What an awful way to start a great Hawaii trip going through LAX. So I say Orange, done!
Alaska already has a daily ONT-HNL flight, nice and convenient for everyone living in PSP and the IE.
I loved flying out of Orange County. I’m glad to hear it. It’s sad that many of the flights out of Ontario have been cut.
Hi,
This is a comment about the Alaska-Hawaiian merger. Hawaii people have been told that this will be better for them. Since October 1, 2025, I have had so much trouble just trying to sign into my Atmos account and then staying signed in. I have been told several times that my account is invalid. I have had to sign up several times and have had 3 Alaska Airlines accounts. I am also tired of having to sign into both sites to book and then get seating. And on top of that , I have learned that our Hawaiian miles discounts need to be booked on Alaska site, but to book premium seats, Alaska is selling them higher than Hawaiian so you have no chance of getting the lower prices even if you pull up your seating chart on the Hawaiian website. I thought that they were suppose to be One airline, but they seem to me as being a Codeshare airline. This whole booking and linking of accounts have been very frustrating. As a side note, Pualani means nothing now.
Growing pains.
Loyalty programs have gotten eclipsed by the credit card game.
I really like SNA but the runway is too short for me to to trust flights to HNL.
I wish some airline would fly ITO to Long Beach, John Wayne, San Diego, or even LAX (like United used to do). These days, it’s so stressful to have to go to HNL to get anywhere, especially with the Hawaiian/Alaska merger nightmare.
Alaska/Hawaiian and United should fly nonstop flight flights from ONT Airport (Ontario, CA) to Honolulu and Maui. Has a long runways and can better accommodate these flights.
They lost me when they cancelled the direct flight to Texas. I’ve stopped using their credit card for miles.
I live in Riverside and usually fly out of Ontario but they only offer 1 non stop all the others have too many layovers. Plus they are the narrow planes…I am flying out of lax because they still have the wide body Hawaiian air plane but getting there and the gates are miserable. I will definitely check into Orange County….closer than lax.
Absolutely. Anything to avoid LAX. LGB is better, but SNA would be fantastic. Hoping for SNA-OGG in the future!
Have to say it’s seems Alaska is committed to Hawaii at least….they have said that at some point the ETOPS 737’s will be branded Hawaiian Air …..jury is still out how this will shake out. I still think they would have been much better off using the Hawaiian Air brand Internationally……way better to compete with than Alaska……
As a Kaua’i resident with friends in northern Orange county I welcome this option. Anything to avoid LAX.
The runway issues at SNA are real. Short runway, noise restrictions, steep takeoff profile. Everything at John Wayne adds complexity and cost. If any airline can figure out the math, it’s probably Alaska, but they’ll need every advantage the MAX 8 plane and their smarts can give them.
Okay so first silence on new routes and then two the same day. I guess this shows how much confidence Alaska has in Hawaii travel rebounding. They’re clearly positioning themselves as the go-to West Coast carrier for the islands, at least from So Cal and the Pacific NW. I think the question is whether Southern California can sustain both Burbank and Orange County flights long term in addition to the existing options.
It’s great to see another airline finally giving this route a shot. Still, Alaska’s adding a lot of capacity all at once. I just hope they’re not spreading themselves too thin while they try to fold Hawaiian Airlines into the operation at the same time.
I flew the United version a few years and loved it. Walking through John Wayne’s small easy access terminal and being in Honolulu six hours later felt too good to be true, and apparently it was! If Alaska brings it back, I’ll be booking again on day one. This is a great development.
This is good news for those of us who live in south Orange County. We’ve missed having an easy way to get to Hawaii without the long trafficy drive up to LAX or down to SAN. I hope Alaska can finally make it work even though I still remember how short that runway is when you’re on takeoff. Fingers crossed this one lasts longer than the last two tries.
Given that Alaska has extensive presence in Mexico, do you think they would ever consider nonstop service between Hawai‘i and Mexico? It seems like that could be a winner to connect Honolulu to Mexico City.
Waaaaaaaaaaay back when, Western Airlines tried MEX-HNL.
I can’t imagine there would be much demand for it.
This was long before the Mexican resorts became what they are now, which is to say, pretty much like Hawaii, but closer, cheaper, and Spanish-speaking.