Tokyo-based Sun Plus and Delta Airlines will add flights between Japan and Honolulu from mid-November to early January to help boost arrivals that have dropped because of fewer flights and continued earthquake and tsunami-related fallout.

Sun Plus, an international charter broker entering the Hawaii market for the first time, will offer 21 direct charter flights from Nov.13 to Jan. 3. The flights, which will add 6,132 seats to the isle market, will mainly operate out of cities such as Hiroshima, Sendai and Kumamoto that have not previously offered direct service.

Delta Air Lines also has announced that it will launch nonstop seasonal service from Fukuoka and Honolulu, beginning Dec. 28. This will be the only direct scheduled flight from Fukuoka, which is on Kyushu.

"This is great news for the Japan market, which has seen arrivals drop by 9.2 percent through July," said David Uchiyama, vice president of brand management for the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

Before these announcements, seats on Japanese planes bound for Hawaii had plunged 4.2 percent through May, Uchiyama said. The results, which have been measured against the first five months of 2010, reflect the temporary suspension of flights from Japan to Hawaii after the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan on March 11, he said.

Airline efficiency trends, which have favored the substitution of 767 planes for larger 777 and 747 planes, also have reduced available seats, Uchiyama said.

These latest flights "are a sign that Japan is recovering and highlights pent-up demand for travel to our islands, especially from cities that currently do not have direct flight access," said Mike McCartney, HTA president and chief executive.

The flights, which build on the 40 charters that were added between the Golden Week and Obon holidays, bode well for the future of Japanese tourism for Hawaii, Uchiyama said.

"The decision-makers look at charters to see how quickly they fill and if they are successful, consideration of scheduled service is the next step," he said. "I think you’ll see arrivals from Japan start to inch up in August and that will continue through the balance of the year."

If current market conditions remain, Uchiyama said he expects more carriers that serve Japan will switch to larger planes and expand during the first half of 2012.