Kona airport on the Big Island of Hawaii closed Monday afternoon after discovering cracks on the runway. The airport has a single 11,000 foot runway. They quickly brought in contractors to mill and resurface a 10′ x 10′ patch of runway, and expect to complete resurfacing in order to reopen service on Tuesday.
KOA 10PM Update: work is on schedule to reopen the runway Tuesday morning. Crews are repaving a 10’ x 20’ section. pic.twitter.com/xaCnVtjwX4
— Hawaii DOT (@DOTHawaii) January 16, 2024
KOA runway repair 1/15/24 as of 11:40 PM pic.twitter.com/JMRNyXOe9d
— Hawaii DOT (@DOTHawaii) January 16, 2024
There will continue to be some flight disruption. Planes that couldn’t land on Monday won’t be there on Tuesday to depart, and airlines may hold back or cancel flights pending completion of work – rather than risking a diversion if completion is delayed. And it may take a few days to reaccommodate passengers on other flights.
Aside From Security Screening And A Restaurant On Each Side, Kona Airport Is Mostly Open Air/Un-air conditioned
Gate areas are too small for large narrowbodies leaving around the same time
According to Cirium schedule data, Hwaiian Airlines has the most flights out of Kona each month (670), unsurprisingly given their network between the islands, followed by Southwest (281) and Alaska (176). United has the most seat miles, flying larger aircraft to the mainland, at 96 million versus Alaska’s 81 million. 10 airlines operate flights from Kona this month, also including WestJet; Japan Airlines (just 3 flights); Delta; Air Canada; American; and Southern Airways Express (just to Maui).
American Airlines at Kona Airport
United Airlines at Kona Airport
Hawaii’s economy has been harmed in the past year by massive fires in Lahaina on Maui. While it appears at this time that this disruption will be brief, it’s another hit to tourism. In the meantime, the next-biggest airport on the Big Island is Hilo, with Hawaiian (Honolulu, Maui) and Southwest (Honolulu) service, nearly an 80 mile drive and 90 minute drive away. A little closer is Waimea-Kohala Airport which has two daily 9 passenger Cessnas to Maui.
If you’re stuck in Kona for an extra day or two waiting to get out, I highly recommend picking up lunch from Da Poke Shack.
This is a wonderful little airport that my wife and I fly to annually for an extended trip starting in mid-February, so it’s great to learn how quickly they responded to make these required repairs. It’s also the only airport I’ve ever flown to where virtually all of the departure gates are in the large open air atrium underneath several of those tiki styled roofs that Gary has pictured in the article. Incredibly pleasant to be waiting for our annual DL flight back to the mainland (always either LAX or SEA) while sitting adjacent to palm trees and an amazing array of flowering plants. Couldn’t recommend more highly visiting the Big Island, and especially that western coast from Kailua-Kona through the Waikoloa Beach resorts.
@Brian … Wrong island . Too much sharp lava .
@Brian
Fully agree. We have been coming to this laidback island for 13 years every January. In fact here at the moment, leaving tomorrow, hopefully.
@Norita
Better yet you will have a partially new runway to blast off from! This will be 11 straight for us, but coming out of MSP we took one trip their in January, but came home and still had nearly 3 months of winter left, so now we just delay it a bit. Our favorite HA island to be sure!
Been to the Hilo (ITO) airport. Nice facility on what some call the “real Hawaii” side of the island. A two hour drive away. Unfortunately you have to connect in Maui or Oahu now if you are coming from the mainland.