Southwest Airlines has announced plans to add Hawaii to its route map, starting next year, and using its new Boeing 737MAX planes to do it.
The airline, which flies an all-737 fleet hasn’t previously had planes that could make the jump from the mainland to the island state, but is now requesting FAA approval for ETOPS (Extended Operations) permission to fly the new planes over that over-water distance.
The 737MAX is playing a similar role in the trans-Atlantic market, with Norwegian, among others, opening Europe-to-America service. The extended range of the smaller planes allows service on less-dense routes to smaller cities.
Southwest has been the only one of the top 6 U.S. airlines with no Hawaii service. Once approval is granted, the airline will announce details and schedules.
