Hawaiian Airlines cuts Austin service, begins network integration with Alaska

05.12.2024 - 14:37 / thepointsguy.com

Hawaiian Airlines is ending service on one of its newest routes.

The Honolulu-based airline will cease flying between Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) and Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) on March 26, 2025, as first seen in Cirium schedules and later confirmed by a carrier spokesperson.

This 3,764-mile route from Austin to HNL was launched during the pandemic in April 2021 and came at a time when growth at AUS was quite hot.

Most major U.S. airlines boosted service to the Texas capital during and since the coronavirus pandemic, but now Hawaiian is the latest to retreat from the market.

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American Airlines also made a major change in Austin when it went from multiple blockbuster schedule expansions to sweeping cuts that pared back its Austin service to roughly pre-expansion levels.

In Hawaiian's case, the airline declined to share specifics about what was wrong with the Austin route. It instead touted the first tranche of network harmonization with Alaska Airlines as the reason for the cut.

The merger between Alaska and Hawaiian moved one step closer to completion earlier this year when the U.S. Department of Justice opted not to block the deal. The airlines were required to make some concessions to the Department of Transportation to close the deal, but at least those compromises are largely passenger-friendly.

While the legal proceedings are finalized, the two airlines have started integrating their networks.

"As we begin the exciting work to integrate our combined networks to offer our guests more flights and connections to more cities, we are making some initial adjustments to a few routes," a Hawaiian Airlines spokesperson explained in a statement to TPG.

Going forward, Hawaiian said it would continue to serve the Honolulu to Austin market via one-stop connections, primarily through San Diego and Seattle.

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These one-stop connections are powered by the legacy Alaska Airlines network, which offers service from Austin to both San Diego and Seattle. The two airlines seemingly believe that there isn't enough nonstop demand to make the Austin to Hawaii market work; or, at the very least, they believe that loyalists won't mind a connection.

Once Hawaiian pulls the plug on Austin service, it'll free up an Airbus A330 (the wide-body jet currently operating the route).

As part of the network integration between the merged carriers, Hawaiian will upgauge one of the five daily Alaska Airlines Boeing 737s flying between Seattle and Honolulu.

Hawaiian's Airbus A330 will accommodate more passengers and expand cargo capacity, and this