It’s an unusual departure time, but for Hawaiian Airlines it’s all about the destination.
So at 1:55 a.m. Tuesday, Hawaiian will become the only U.S. carrier offering nonstop service between Hawaii and Taiwan when it makes its inaugural flight from Honolulu to the capital city, Taipei.
Hawaiian said its departure time from Honolulu and 6:15 a.m. arrival time in Taipei the next day was set to allow for convenient connections to other cities in Southeast Asia.
Gov. Neil Abercrombie will be among the guests on the 10-hour, 20-minute flight that state tourism officials hope will lead to a jump in visitors from Taiwan to Hawaii. Other dignitaries on the flight will include the governor’s chief of staff, Bruce Coppa; and V.C. Chu, director general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Honolulu.
Taiwan brought 9,641 visitors to Hawaii last year, up 17.8 percent from 8,186 in 2011, according to data from the Hawaii Tourism Authority. But those numbers are far down from previous years, when arrivals hit a five-year peak of 51,353 in 2009. In March 2011, China Airlines suspended nonstop service to Honolulu from Taiwan due to low demand but resumed nonstop service last month. During that time Taiwanese flying to Hawaii had to transit through other airports.
Through May of this year, visitor arrivals from Taiwan are up 18.5 percent to 4,074 from 3,437 in the first five months of 2011.
"The demand for service to Hawaii from the Taiwan market has been growing and we are delighted to respond to the strong interest by delivering our new nonstop service to and from Taipei," Hawaiian President and CEO Mark Dunkerley said in a statement. "The Hawaiian Islands are the ideal midpoint destination, perfectly situated to offer dual-destination trips with easy connections between Taipei and our 11 gateways in the U.S."
The three-days-a-week service begins nine months after the United States said it would include Taiwan in the Visa Waiver Program, which permits visa-free travel to the U.S. for eligible travelers visiting for up to 90 days for business or tourism. The program went into effect Nov. 1.
Hawaiian will use a 294-seat A330-200 aircraft and depart Honolulu every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. The return flight departs Taipei at 8:55 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and arrives in Honolulu at 1:10 p.m. the same day.
The service will add nearly 46,000 new air seats to the market annually.
Taipei, with a population of 23 million, will be the ninth new international route for Hawaiian in less than three years since beginning service to Haneda International Airport in Tokyo in November 2010. Hawaiian is also planning to begin service between Honolulu and Beijing in April.
Hawaiian has often said the impetus for beginning service to Seoul in January 2011 stemmed from South Korea’s inclusion in November 2008 in the Visa Waiver Program. In 2007, the year before the waiver, there were 42,000 South Korean visitors to Hawaii. In 2012 there were 156,819 visitors to Hawaii from South Korea, up 39.3 percent from 112,567 in 2011.
State and airline officials say they hope Taiwan’s inclusion in the Visa Waiver Program will bring similar results.
