Mokulele Airlines is making good on the promise that it made to expand interisland service to meet the community’s needs back in January 2021 when it became the only airline that flies to both Molokai and Lanai.
The carrier, whose parent company is Southern Airways Express, announced plans Monday to add two 28-seat Saab 340B Plus aircraft, which have the capability to carry more than three times the number of passengers that are on its standard nine-passenger Cessna Caravan turboprop airplanes. The Saab aircraft have overhead bins and offer plenty of cargo room for super large and bulky items, including wheelchairs.
During a news conference at Terminal 3 of Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, Mokulele and state government officials also highlighted improvements to the carrier’s Honolulu hub. State Department of Transportation Airports Division Deputy Director Ross Higashi said Terminal 3 parking has been expanded to 60 spots, up from 45. Higashi said HDOT staff also have erected three tents, which cost $1,800, to provide covered outdoor holding space for passengers. HDOT is getting ready to start procurement to replace the tents with permanent structures, he said.
Southern, which began in 2013 by offering flights from Memphis, Tenn., to Destin, Fla., using a total of four pilots and three aircraft, was continuing a string of expansions and acquisitions in February 2019 when it bought Mokulele, which was founded in 1994 by Rebecca “Kawehi” Inaba, the first Native Hawaiian woman to start an airline.
Southern, now one of the country’s largest commuter airlines, currently serves nearly 40 American cities across five U.S. time zones. Until now its fleet of over 30 aircraft has included nine-seater planes like the Cessna Caravan/Grand Caravan, the King Air Super 200 and the Citation Bravo.
New fleet
Mokulele Chief of Staff Keith Sisson, who was on Oahu to mark the carrier’s latest Hawaii expansion, said the airline has approximately 14 Cessna Grand Caravans based in Hawaii, which operate approximately 130 interisland and intraisland flights per day on routes serving every island except Kauai.
“We’ve grown from operating about eight airplanes a day in 2019 to running about 12 airplanes a day now,” Sisson said, adding that the carrier’s Hawaii flights will increase even more with the addition of the two Saabs, and another Cessna Grand Caravan, which is expected around Labor Day.
Sisson said Mokulele already has begun offering charter flights on one of the Saab 340B planes, while the other is out getting a paint job. Both are painted light blue and white and sport Southern’s branding, including a magnolia blossom on the tail.
Sisson said once both Saab 340B planes become available later this summer, Mokulele will start scheduled service on the larger planes. The airline had previously announced that the Saab 340B would start scheduled service with two flights a day to Lanai and Molokai from Honolulu as Southern Airways Express under a Public Charter authority.
Mokulele has said the Saab 340B flights would be displayed differently in its booking engine so travelers would be able to see when the larger planes were operating.
Sisson said the Saab 340B aircraft are the largest planes that Mokulele’s parent company flies.
“This is the first time that we’ve expanded to an aircraft of this size companywide,” he said.
The Saab 340B aircraft, however, are not the largest planes that have served Molokai and Lanai. In the past, Island Air flew 70-seat ATR-72s, and before Southern Airways merged with Mokulele, the carrier operated the 72-seat Embraer 170 jets interisland.
Sisson said that in recent times Molokele has found turboprop aircraft usually are sufficient to handle demand from Lanai and Molokai. However, he said the Saab 340B aircraft is ideal for providing additional capacity during peak travel times such as Monday mornings and Friday afternoons as many customers are flying for work or medical reasons. It also adds enough seats so that ball teams do not have to split up across multiple flights to get to their destination, he said.
Mokulele’s merger with Makani Kai Air in 2021 helped stabilize the carrier so that it was able to withstand the hardships created by travel quarantines and made it capable of providing air service to Molokai and Lanai.
Richard Schuman, founder of Makani Kai Airlines, who now serves as Mokulele’s executive vice president, said, “I’m very happy to be part of the Southern Mokulele brand to be able to offer better service. I would never have been able to have offered this to the Molokai people.”
Molokai, Lanai stops
Mokulele Airlines is now the only airline with commercially scheduled flights to both Molokai and Lanai. That makes some days extremely busy, especially at peak travel times.
“Adding more seats and extra service, for sure that’s important,” said Keoni Otani, who works at M Nakai Repair and travels back and forth weekly to a job site on Molokai. “They are the only show in town, and today is the busiest morning that I’ve seen here.”
Mokulele’s main competitor in the Molokai market after Makani Kai Air had been ‘Ohana by Hawaiian Airlines, which ceased passenger service between Honolulu and both Molokai and Lanai in January 2021.
‘Ohana by Hawaiian flights with the 48-seat ATR-42 turboprop were launched in the spring of 2014, followed by all-cargo service with ATR-72 aircraft in the summer of 2018. Hawaiian Airlines decided to dismantle the service during the pandemic, which exacerbated its longtime struggle to keep load factors and pricing in sync.
In preparation for the exit of ‘Ohana by Hawaiian, Mokulele constructed wheelchair lifts to assist passengers with limited mobility. The carrier also said it implemented an alternative boarding procedure and seating configuration so that it could transport heavier passengers.
Daren Navarro, a Mokulele flight attendant who lost his job with ‘Ohana by Hawaiian when it closed, said he is proud to work for Mokulele. Navarro also praised Mokulele’s improvements, including its investment in the Saab 340B aircraft.
“They are important and will help get passengers back and forth more promptly for doctor’s appointments, sporting events, business and vacations,” Navarro said. “It gives passengers more options.”
Hawaii state Sen. Lynn DeCoite (D, Molokai-Lanai-East Maui) said she appreciates Mokulele’s additional investments, especially since the airline has the important task of supplying airlift to her constituents on Lanai and Molokai.
“Their service is very, very important. When ‘Ohana by Hawaiian closed, I had nothing but complaints about the accessibility to get on the smaller planes,” DeCoite said.
DeCoite also thanked Higashi for helping to get temporary holding facilities up for Mokulele’s customers as well as additional parking stalls at the Honolulu hub.
“People were hot. They were in the sun and the weather,” she said.
DeCoite said she will continue to support additional state investment, as well as the use of special funds, to expand airport jobs. She also wants more improvement in Honolulu at Terminal 3, which she said still needs a permanent outdoor holding facility and more bathroom stalls for customers.
