Every Sunday, "Back in the Day" looks at an article that ran on this date in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. The items are verbatim, so don’t blame us today for yesteryear’s bad grammar.
Hawaiian Airlines is thinking seriously of replacing its five twin-engine Convairs with four-engine turbo-prop planes that could shave 17 minutes off the flying time between Honolulu and Kona.
British-made Viscounts are among the planes under consideration, but no decision has been made yet.The changeover would be made within the next two to four years.
Lionel D. Machado will go to the world’s largest air show — Britain’s Farnborough show — September 4-6 to view all the possible choices of planes.
Machado is Hawaiian’s vice-president in charge of operations.
Jack C. Tobin, Hawaiian’s vice-president in charge of sales and service, indicated buying the new planes wouldn’t be feasible unless they could fly into all the Islands’ major airports, including Kona’s.
Kona’s Civic Club took steps at a meeting last night toward giving their area a larger airport as part of an improvement program to be sought at the next Legislature. …
Arthur D. Lewis, H.A.L. president, attended the club meeting, held at the Kona Palms Hotel, to support the program for a larger airport. …
He said Hawaiian Airlines has no complaint about its Convairs but that piston-engine aircraft are gradually becoming obsolete. …
In Honolulu, the air line’s Tobin said the Convairs, which originally cost $550,000 apiece, would sell now for between $700,000 and $800,000 each.
That would provide a downpayment of some $4 million toward the purchase of turbo-prop planes, which cost $1 million or more apiece.
Back in Honolulu today, Lewis said the initial purchase probably would be four turbo-prop planes with more to be bought later as needed.
He said preliminary indications are that the Viscount would be the most economical plane to run over Hawaiian’s routes since it carries between 50 and 60 passengers as compared to about 40 for other craft. …
It was noted that in a ditching at sea, the Viscount’s low wings would keep the cabin afloat above the water line whereas the high wings of other planes, such as the Fokker Friendship, would not.
