Southern Airways Express LLC, doing business as Mokuele Airlines, temporarily suspended all of its interisland airline routes across Hawaii on Wednesday morning, citing maintenance needs and an abundance of caution.

Louis Saint-Cyr, Mokulele’s chief operations officer and president of Hawaii operations, on Wednesday afternoon issued a statement indicating that some service had been restored, but did not respond to questions seeking clarification on which routes were operating, the timeline for full restoration or what the maintenance issues were.

Saint-Cyr said, “Safety is our top priority. We are temporarily not operating some flights in our fleet for precautionary maintenance inspections. We continue to operate certain flights and on impacted flights we are rebooking or otherwise accommodating passengers. We are focused on passenger care while prioritizing passengers with medical needs and health concerns.”

Russell Pang, Hawaii Department of Transportation spokesperson, said in an email that HDOT is in constant communications with Mokulele Airlines and its executive management.

“Due to the nature of the maintenance concerns, Mokulele has advised the HDOT only they can resolve the situation,” Pang said. “We understand the airline is in communication with two chartered service airlines to assist affected passengers.”

Alex Da Silva, spokesperson for Hawaiian Airlines, said, “We are in contact with Mokulele to better understand the situation, but we are unable to serve Molokai or Lanai with our aircraft.”

Just last August Mokulele Airlines, which provides essential air service to the remote communities of Lanai and Molokai, grounded several aircraft after Federal Aviation Administration inspections flagged maintenance issues. At that time, Mokulele said that the inspections, though routine, uncovered a compliance matter requiring immediate attention.

Mokulele took over Essential Air Service (EAS) to Lanai and Molokai in January 2021 after Ohana by Hawaiian suspended its unsubsidized EAS service to those islands. By December 2023, Mokulele had threatened to stop service to Lanai because the route was unprofitable.

The U.S. DOT awarded Mokulele an annual subsidy in August 2024 of approximately $4 million per year for two years to maintain flights to Lanai under the EAS program, which supports routes vital to small or remote communities. The subsidies were awarded to ensure the continuation of service between Lanai and Honolulu amid concerns about Mokulele’s scheduling reliability.

Sen. Lynn DeCoite (D- East and Upcountry Maui-­Molokai-Lanai), said in a statement Wednesday, “It is frustrating to learn about the unfortunate safety and maintenance issues that caused Mokulele Airlines to ground its fleet.

“Today’s event has revealed a clear and crucial need for multiple airline options that can serve Molokai and Lanai residents, DeCoite said. “Hawaii’s congressional delegation has completely ignored transportation and emergency challenges within rural communities in our state; they should address this issue and not rely solely on the airlines to find solutions.”

Rep. Adrian Tam, (D- Waikiki), who chairs the House Committee on Tourism, said the current situation, “highlights the vulnerabilities that communities of Molokai and Lanai face and the need to support the airlines service for them because it’s their access to health care.”

John Pele, owner of Hiro’s Ohana Grill in Hotel Molokai, said, “For the people, especially kupuna and keiki who have medical needs, Mokulele is the lifeline and it’s a heavy strain on them so hopefully they can get back up running.”

Pele, who is the executive director of the Maui Hotel &Lodging Association and was on Oahu Wednesday for opening day at the state Legislature, said the main impact of the air service disruption for Molokai residents is access to health care; however, even one day’s interruption in service also negatively affects businesses.

“Being the owner of a restaurant in Hotel Molokai, we depend on local business and the hotel to have some tourism to visit the restaurant — it’s a serious concern for local employees who depend on the work,” he said.

Customers are encouraged to contact Mokulele’s customer service team at 808-495-4188 or toll free at 1-866-260-7070 for assistance with rebooking or refunds. The airline has not provided a timeline for the resumption of all services.