Hawaiian Airlines is bringing its flagship jet to New York, but it's not all good news
Hawaiian Airlines will finally send its flagship Boeing 787 Dreamliner to New York.
The Honolulu-based carrier filed plans recently to deploy the Dreamliner on flights between Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) and John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) starting in April, as first seen in Cirium schedules and later confirmed by a carrier spokesperson.
Hawaiian's 4,983-mile domestic route will be operated by the Boeing 787 between April 22 and Aug. 20. The 787 replaces the airline's Airbus A330-200 that's historically been used on this route.
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For some flyers, the Boeing 787 represents great news. That's especially true in the pointy end of the plane, where the airline offers a 34-seat, lie-flat business-class cabin. Pods are arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration with sliding doors and direct aisle access.
That contrasts with the A330, which offers an outdated 2-2-2 configuration with limited privacy and just 18 seats.
Nearly doubling the premium capacity might also make it easier to score an upgrade or redeem miles for a saver-level first-class seat. (An initial check didn't show any more availability than before the aircraft change.)
Even those seated in the back should enjoy aspects of the Dreamliner experience, including the lower pressurization, mood lighting and other modern touches.
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In a statement confirming the move, an airline spokesperson shared that "we are excited to bring our Dreamliner to New York in late April and operate it throughout the summer. Our guests traveling between New York and Honolulu will enjoy the warm Hawaiian hospitality of our crew and award-winning service in the elevated comfort of our 787 cabin. We look forward to having more guests experience our flagship aircraft as we plan to welcome three more 787s this year."
That said, the economy cabin is arranged in an industry-standard 3-3-3 layout, which isn't as good for couples and families that have long preferred the Airbus A330 economy cabin for its 2-4-2 configuration.
Another downside is that while Hawaiian has installed Starlink satellite Wi-Fi across much of its fleet, the Boeing 787s don't yet have internet access, so prepare to be offline for 10 hours if you're flying Hawaiian from New York to Honolulu.
To date, Hawaiian has primarily flown its Dreamliners on flights between the West Coast and Hawaii. Those routes don't really take advantage of the aircraft's range, so it'll be exciting to see it flying to New York in the coming months.
Of course, with the Alaska Airlines takeover, it's possible that the strategy will change once again, but for now, flyers traveling between New York and Hawaii might be in for an upgrade.
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