Alaska Airlines 737s begin Honolulu-Kahului flights Saturday; Neighbor Island check-in time moves to 50 minutes

Alaska Airlines will begin flying three daily Boeing 737 flights between Honolulu and Kahului on Saturday, and Hawaiian Airlines is asking all Neighbor Island travelers to check in and drop bags at least 50 minutes before departure, up from 30 minutes.

The flights are part of the integration of Alaska and Hawaiian airlines. According to the Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation, the airlines added them to support Neighbor Island capacity during the transition.

Maui passengers flying to Honolulu on an Alaska 737 should visit Alaska’s counters at Kahului Airport, which are next to Hawaiian’s, for check-in and bag drop. In Honolulu, passengers bound for Kahului on an Alaska 737 should check in online or through the airline’s app. They can drop bags at the self-service bag-tag stations in Terminal 1, Lobby 3, at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport.

All Hawaiian and Alaska Neighbor Island check-ins and bag drops in Honolulu will remain in Terminal 1, the department said.

Also starting Saturday, check-in and bag drop for all Hawaiian Airlines international departures will move to Terminal 2, Lobby 4. The department said the change is meant to improve lobby flow for passengers in both terminals on Alaska and Hawaiian flights. It encouraged travelers to check their flight information before arriving and to allow extra time to find the new location.

Hawaiian said the earlier Neighbor Island check-in deadline should improve baggage handling and help flights leave on time.

The 737 flights between Honolulu and Kahului will also serve as a test case. Airport operators, state transportation officials and the airline will use them to determine jet bridge settings, gate requirements and spacing, and changes to passenger flow, baggage handling and aircraft servicing before a larger 737 rollout.

The merged company has announced plans to retire Hawaiian’s 717 fleet and replace it with Hawaiian-branded 737s based in Honolulu around 2028. Hawaiian will keep using its 717s for Neighbor Island flights until then.

“HDOT is working closely with Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines to ensure airport operations are prepared to accommodate the 737 interisland fleet,” Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation Director Ed Sniffen said.

Hawaiian Airlines Chief Executive Officer Diana Birkett Rakow said that the changes to lobby flow, timing and capacity allow the airline to keep connecting island communities while it prepares for the fleet transition.