The Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) isn’t forecasting much
year-over-year change in the total number of available air seats on nonstop
flights between Hawaii and the U.S. mainland over the next three months.
In its latest Air Seat Outlook, the HTA is calling for a
0.3% increase in total domestic airlift through May, June and July.
Available seats on nonstop flights between the Hawaiian
Islands and the destination’s largest visitor source market, U.S. states west
of the Rockies, are expected to inch up 1.7% to more than 2 million seats.
However, airlift from the eastern U.S. will likely plunge
nearly 10% year over year through the end of July, with major capacity losses
expected from Atlanta, down 21%, and Chicago, off 24.5%. The HTA is expecting
just over 236,000 seats from the East in the next three months.
Meanwhile, international airlift to the Hawaiian Islands is
expected to grow slightly, inching up about 1% during the three-month stretch
despite a projected 4.6% decline in air seats on nonstop flights between the
Aloha State and Japan and a 5.7% decrease in airlift between Canada and Hawaii.