Hawaiian Airlines inaugurated service between Fukuoka Airport in Japan and Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye Airport Wednesday with grand gate-side celebrations at both airports. The airline will offer four weekly nonstops with an Airbus A330.
On Wednesday, Hawaiian Airlines announced the launch of four new daily nonstops from Fukuoka Airport (FUK) in Japan and Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) in Honolulu. The route will be operated with an Airbus A330 featuring 18 full-flat Premium Cabin leather seats arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration, 68 Extra Comfort and 192 Main Cabin seats. To mark the occasion Hawai’i’s flagship carrier arranged festive gate celebrations on both ends of the route. In Honolulu passengers were treated to a performance by the Hawaiian Airlines Serenaders music and hula troupe and special keepsakes commemorating the inaugural flight. Hawaiian Airline flight HA827 departed HNL on Tuesday November 26 at 11:20AM, arriving FUK at 5:21PM on Wednesday.
The return flight departed Fukuoka at 7:55PM Thursday November 27th, arriving Honolulu at 8:45AM the same day. At the gate ceremony in Fukuoka, Hawaiian Airlines’ Senior Vice President – Global Sales and Alliances, Theo Panagiotoulias said,
“Fukuoka and Honolulu share a special relationship, so we’re thrilled to bring local residents of Kyushu and Hawai’i one step closer to their vacation with our convenient nonstop service. We're pleased to now offer 35 weekly flights between Hawai’i and five gateways in Japan with the launch of our new Fukuoka service.”
The historical ties between Hawai’i and Fukuoka go back over a century, when in 1885 the first 149 immigrants from Fukuoka arrived to work in Hawai’i after King David Kalakaua signed a treaty of reciprocity with Japan. Then, in 1981 the State of Hawai’i passed a resolution making Fukuoka Prefecture Hawai’i’s first “Sister-State.” With the new service, Hawaiian Airlines now serves four gateways, including existing service to Osaka, Sapporo and Tokyo Narita and Haneda airports. The airline now operates 35 weekly nonstop flights between Japan and Hawaii. Located on the northern shore of the Japanese island of Kyushu, Fukuoka is the capital of Fukuoka Prefecture.
Source: Hawaiian Airlines