Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines Launch Connecting Flights to Australia and New Zealand

There was loads to talk about when it came to the JetBlue Spirit merger as the DOJ stopped the airlines in their tracks. However that wasn't the case with Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines and their merger. There were little to no objections to the carriers joining forces. Now with the merger completed the airlines are finally starting to work together. Here come the first joint routes from the US west coast to Australia and New Zealand.

Update – July 2025: Hawaiian Airlines has announced increased frequency on its Honolulu-Sydney route in response to strong demand. The airline will operate daily flights (up from five weekly) between December 18, 2025, and January 31, 2026, during peak travel season between Hawaii and Australia. This enhancement demonstrates the early success of the Alaska-Hawaiian partnership in connecting the US mainland to the Pacific.

How the Alaska-Hawaiian Partnership Creates New US-Australia Routes

The partnership connects two destinations that weren't previously accessible via Alaska Airlines. While Hawaiian Airlines has operated flights to Sydney since 2004 and Auckland since 2013, this marks the first time these routes integrate with Alaska's mainland US network to offer seamless connections.

The first instance for this to happens is the new connecting service from the US west coast to Sydney, Australia, and Auckland, New Zealand. The idea is to use Honolulu as the transit hub for these flights with Hawaiian aircraft flying the routes from Honolulu to Auckland and Sydney, while Alaska takes care of shuttling passengers from and to the mainland. Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330-200s comes in a two class configuration featuring:

• 18 lie-flat business class seats in a 2-2-2 layout
• 260 economy class seats in a standard 2-4-2 layout

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 typical cabin configuration:

• 12-16 Business Class Seats (Domestic First Class)
• 112-162 Economy Class Seats

Alaska Airlines on the other hand will use one of its many Boeing 737s to fly the remainder of the route. Its planes feature 12 or 16 business class (Domestic First Class in the US) seats and a variable number of economy seats, depending on the aircraft variant.

These are not new destinations for Hawaiian Airlines, which has been operating flights to Sydney since 2004 and to Auckland since 2013. What is new is the synergy with Alaska to become a viable option for transpacific travel.

Flights connecting to Auckland have already commenced operations and will continue until April 30th 2025 (to then resume in November 2025 until June 2026). Sydney connecting flights will start February 1st ending on September 30th 2025.

This is what an itinerary looks like for February 1st 2025 from Portland, Oregon, to Sydney, Australia:

Total journey duration is approximately 19 hours which, of course, includes the stopover in Honolulu lasting 3 and a half hours.

Flight Schedule and Aircraft Details

Auckland Service:

• HA845 departs Honolulu (HNL) at 13:15 with arrival into Auckland (AKL) at 21:20+1.
• HA846 departs Auckland (AKL) at 23:30 with arrival into Honolulu (HNL) at 09:10.

• Operating period: resuming November 16th, 2025 ending June 2026
• Frequency: 3 weekly flights
• Aircraft: Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330-200

Sydney Service:

• HA451 departs Honolulu (HNL) at 13:05 with arrival into Sydney (SYD) at 19:45+1.
• HA452 departs Sydney (SYD) at 21:40 with arrival into Honolulu (HNL) at 11:25.

• Operating period: February 1 – September 30, 2025
• Frequency increase: Daily flights from December 18, 2025 – January 31, 2026 (up from 5 weekly)
• Aircraft: Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330-200

Alaska Airlines' New Strategy: Using Honolulu as a Pacific Hub

Although Hawaiian Airlines has been serving Sydney and Auckland for already quite some time, this is the first time it is serving the two destinations as part of a connecting service onwards to the US mainland. Prior to the merger with Alaska Airlines the airline's focus was primarily on bringing leisure traffic to the Pacific Islands and not making of Honolulu a transit hub. That all changed one Alaska came into the picture.

Now Alaska is interested in leveraging Hawaiian's long range flight capabilities to reach new markets and connect them to its extensive domestic network via Honolulu. The first example of this are the flights the company will operate to Auckland and Sydney from the US west coast. By stopping over in Hawaii passengers can split the long trip in 2 legs, without loosing too much time in transit procedures.

Future Expansion Possibilities

The early success of the Sydney route, evidenced by Hawaiian's decision to increase frequency to daily service during peak season, suggests this hub strategy could expand in coming months. Honolulu's geographic position makes it an ideal launching point for flights throughout Asia, potentially establishing Alaska-Hawaiian as a major player in US-Asia connectivity.