LIHUE — United Airlines has announced plans to move the daily San Francisco to Lihue direct flight to the afternoon.
The San Francisco flight currently departs early morning and arrives in Lihue by early afternoon. Starting in September, the departure flight will shift to the afternoon, said United Spokesman Rahsaan Johnson.
“Doing so enables us to offer flight-connection opportunities in San Francisco to more customers from eastern U.S. cities and from Europe,” he added. “Currently, those flights don’t arrive in San Francisco in time to connect to the morning departure.”
Carol Goodwin, of San Mateo, Calif., has maintained a Sealodge unit in Princeville since the late 1970s. She flies United out of San Francisco frequently and said she would not prefer to arrive in the late evening and still have to make the one-hour trek to her resort.
“It would make it very difficult to travel,” Goodwin said. “It would be even more so for new visitors to the island to be arriving at odd hours.”
Goodwin has flown United for years and there are no other Lihue direct flights out of San Francisco, she said.
To compensate for the San Francisco flight change, Johnson said United will change the daily Los Angeles to Lihue departure time from the afternoon to a morning flight. Customers preferring to arrive in Lihue earlier in the day could connect out of Los Angeles, he said.
Maile Brown of the Kauai Visitors Bureau, compiled the current list of nonstop Mainland flights to and from Lihue.
“This information was obtained by visiting each airline’s timetables and is subject to change at any time by the airlines without notice,” Brown said.
United Airlines currently flies three nonstop flights to Lihue. There is a daily flight from San Francisco. There is a daily flight from Los Angeles, along with two Saturday flights. There is also a weekly Saturday flight from Denver.
American Airlines has two nonstop flights a day from Los Angeles, with no service on Wednesdays.
Delta Airlines has one daily nonstop from Los Angeles.
Alaska Airlines has nonstop flights from three cities. There are three flights from Oakland on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. There are four flights from San Jose County airport on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. There are four flights from San Diego on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday.
The Alaska Airlines non-stop Portland flight discontinues on April 28.
US Airways will start a Phoenix nonstop flight three times week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday starting May 13.
WestJet will start a nonstop from Vancouver, on Saturdays beginning April 26.
Hawaiian Airlines will begin seasonal nonstop service from Lihue to Oakland and Los Angeles in June. The days and times of the direct flights are no yet announced.
Changes La Ronge, Saskatchewan, Canada, to Vancouver.
