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The Points Guy Articles
Alaska Airlines is making changes in Hawaii.
The Seattle-based carrier will add two new routes from its hub at Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL): daily service to Idaho’s Boise Airport (BOI) from Dec. 17 through March 21, 2027, and Saturday-only flights to Spokane International Airport (GEG) in Washington from Dec. 19 through April 17, 2027.
Both new HNL routes will be flown with Boeing 737 Max aircraft.
At the same time, Alaska will end Hawaiian Airlines‘ service to New Zealand. Flights from HNL to Auckland Airport (AKL) on an Airbus A330 will not resume in November as planned.
Hawaiian began flying the HNL-AKL route in 2013, schedule data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows.
Alaska said the changes are “designed to align capacity with evolving travel demand.”
The airline will add flights during peak periods from HNL to Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas with the A330s freed up from the AKL route.
Post-merger map changes
The pace of network changes is picking up since Alaska closed its merger with Hawaiian in 2024. In June, the airline ended five routes to Mexico in favor of added capacity between the mainland U.S. and Hawaii. And, in 2025, it ended Hawaiian’s flights to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Fukuoka Airport (FUK) in Japan, and Incheon Airport (ICN) near Seoul from HNL.
At the same time, Alaska debuted new intercontinental flights from its Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) base. Nonstops to Tokyo’s Narita Airport (NRT) and ICN began in 2025. This summer the carrier is adding service to London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR), Keflavik International Airport (KEF) in Iceland and Fiumicino Airport (FCO) near Rome.
The goal, as Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci puts it, is to build the airline into a global carrier.
“We are creating the fourth global airline in our country to compete against the Big 3,” he said in January referring to American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines.
Prior to the latest changes, seats on Alaska and Hawaiian from HNL were down nearly 1% this year compared to 2025, Cirium schedules show. Seats from SEA were up nearly 2%.
Alaska Atmos loyalty members can still access New Zealand on one of the carrier’s Oneworld alliance partners. For example, American serves AKL from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Qantas Airways from Sydney Airport (SYD).
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