Allegiant Air celebrated its first flight to Hawaii on Friday with a non-stop service from Las Vegas to the Oahu. Spokeswomane for Allegiant, Jessica Wheeler, stated, “In many of our markets, we’ll be starting direct flights to Honolulu later this year that never have had direct service to Honolulu. So this will give them a new direct option that’s very affordable, and we expect it will be extremely successful. In Fresno, we’ve already seen so much popularity on our route that we’ve added an additional route on our schedule before the flight has even started.”
According to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, it is estimated that in 2013, Allegiant Air will have 150,748 seats to Hawaii and will generate $136.3 million in direct visitor spending. This will give the state $14.9 million in tax revenue. Vice President of Brand Management for the Hawaii Tourism Authority, David Uchiyama, stated, “Las Vegas isn’t really the emphasis when you look at the secondary cities they’re coming out of like Stockton, Eugene and Spokane. These are real opportunities for Hawaii where people are going to have greater access. It’s going to create first-time visitors here because of the access. So that’s really the focal point for Allegiant.”
Chief of Staff for Governor Neil Abercrombie, Bruce Coppa, commented, “To see that there’s more and more interest in coming to Hawaii is good for our economy. We are a destination that people want to come to. There’s a lot of competition but Hawaii is unique. What we’re seeing with Allegiant, and with the recent direct flights from Hawaiian and United to the East Coast, is that it’s bringing more and more of America into Hawaii. So it’s a good day. It’s a good thing.”
Source: Honolulu Star Advertiser, 6-30-2012, www.staradvertiser.com
Posted by Jeff Uyemura-Reyes, Broker-in-Charge, Realtor®
Global Executive Realty, LLC
www.myhawaiihomesearch.com
www.myhawaiicondo.com
www.myhawaiidreamhome.com
