Hawaiian Air’s

big move south

HAWAIIAN Airlines will be mov ing next month to step up its capacity on some South Pacific routes to consolidate its already strong position in the region. The new sche dule, provided governments approve the changes, will mean the introduction of a TriStar 1011 on the Honolulu- Papeete run, the first time Hawaiian has used any of its wide-bodied jets on South Pacific routes, and the adding of capacity between Honolulu and Rarotonga.

In the past, the airline flew a triangle service from Honolulu to Rarotonga and then Papeete, returning to Hawaii. The problem, so far as Cook Islands tourism was concerned, arose from the fact that most of the bookings outward for the trip were American tourists heading for Tahiti, which left only a small number of seats for Cook Island traffic. By dedicat ing a TriStar to serve Papeete direct, and using the DC-8 jet direct between Honolulu and Rarotonga, the company will be offering all 174 seats each week to that traffic.

The DC-8 will, on reaching Rarotonga, fly return on to Auckland under Air Rarotonga’s colours. That local airline is now looking to attract more Australians to use its service out of Auckland. Most Australians going to the Cooks fly either by Cook Islands International Airlines from Sydney in an aircraft operated by Ansett, or via Auckland to connect with Air New Zealand flights.

But now Air Rarotonga has handed their business in Sydney to the same company which acts as Hawaiian Air lines’ selling agent, Walshes World. Its managing director, Robert Dell, told Pacific Islands Monthly the company will be aiming to introduce innovative pack ages for Australians, and was talking to other trans-Tasman carriers (including Continental, United and Qantas) about a combined package with Air Rarotonga.

There was the possibility in the future of Hawaiian itself seeking rights for the

highly lucrative Auckland-Sydney run.

Dell said there was much unused capacity in the Cook Islands. The origin al plan with Cook Islands International Airlines was that Ansett would use a 767 jet, but was now operating the smaller 727 and it also had to carry passen gers for Polynesian Airlines to Apia on the same run. Air New Zealand landed at Rarotonga three times a week.

But at Christmas, said Dell, all flights were full out of Auckland with Cook Islanders returning home to visit their families, and Air Rarotonga would be looking to get increased lift into the country at that time the monopoly on

seats by islanders returning home meant the hotels were almost deserted at Christmas. This left the prospect for making some attractive accommodation rates if extra aircraft seats could be found.

Air Rarotonga will also be looking at the country’s unused landing rights.

Hawaiian Airlines flies into Rarotonga on United States landing rights, which means that the Cook Islands has recip-

rocal rights. There is one problem: the Cook Islands has two international car riers Rarotonga and Cook Islands In ternational. Ansett, which manages the latter and has maintained the Sydney link in deference to Cook Island govern ment requests, has shown considerable interest in using the Cook Islands’ Amer ican rights with its new A 320 Airbus fleet. Ansett is determined to become an international airline. D