'Kona International Airport at Keahole' is an
airport on the
Island of Hawai‘i,
Hawai‘i. The airport serves both the town of
Kailua-Kona and the major resorts of the
North Kona and
South Kohala districts (leeward or kona Hawai‘i).
Facilities
The state government of Hawai‘i facility operates an 11,000-foot (3350-m) runway and a terminal complex of single story buildings along the eastern edge of the airfield for arriving and departing passengers, air cargo and mail, airport support, and general aviation operations.
Kona International, or "Kailua-Kona" as it is more often called by locals and interisland passengers, is the only remaining major airport in the
Hawaiian Islands where a mobile ramp is used to plane and deplane passengers. Kona International sees daily
767,
777 and
747 aircraft. The airport terminal is a rambling, open-air set of structures long appreciated by arriving passengers for the casual, "holiday" atmosphere it engenders. Long after other airports in Hawai‘i converted their terminals to multi-story buildings with automated
jetway systems,
Hawaiian Airlines could still utilize their
DC-9 fleet's tailcone exits at Kailua-Kona.
One unique feature to Kona's airport is
United Flight 3, which operates
ORD-
OGG-KOA-ORD on a daily basis aboard a Boeing 777. While the Kona stop certainly adds to the profitablity of this long-haul flight, it is also absolutely essential because
Kahului Airport's runway is too short to allow a fully-loaded 777 to depart for a destination as far away as Chicago.
Much of the airport runway is built on a relatively recent lava flow: the 1801 ''Huehue'' flow from
HualÄlai. This flow extended the shoreline out an estimated 1 mile, adding some four 4 km² of land to the Island (
USGS, 1997).
Airlines and destinations
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Air Canada (Vancouver) [seasonal]
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Aloha Airlines (Honolulu, Kahului, Oakland, Orange County)
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American Airlines (Los Angeles)
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ATA Airlines (Oakland)
★
Hawaiian Airlines (Hilo, Honolulu, Kahului)
★
Island Air (Hilo, Kahului)
★
Japan Airlines
★
★
JALways (Tokyo-Narita)
★
Mesa Airlines
★
★
go! operated by
Mesa Airlines (Honolulu)
★
★
★
go!Express operated by
Mokulele Airlines (Kahului, Molokai)
★
Mokulele Airlines (Hana, Kahului, Kapalua [charter], Lanai [charter], Molokai [charter])
★
Northwest Airlines (Honolulu [seasonal], Seattle/Tacoma)
★
Pacific Wings (Kahului)
★
United Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, Denver, Kahului, Los Angeles, San Francisco)
★
US Airways
★
★
US Airways operated by
America West Airlines (Phoenix)
★
WestJet (Vancouver) [seasonal; begins January 13, 2008]
References
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External links
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Hawaii DOT page for Kona International Airport at Keahole
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