| Aviation in Hawaii | |
|---|---|
| Aviation in the United States | |
 Hawaii State Flag | |
| Airports | |
| Commercial – primary | 7 |
| Commercial – non-primary | 1 |
| General aviation | 6 |
| Military and other airports | 7 |
| First flight | |
| 2 March 1889 (Lighter than air), December 1910 (Heavier than air) [1] | |
Hawaii's first aeronautical event was on 2 March 1889, when Emil L. Melville hung from a trapeze in a balloon. Hawaii's first aircraft flight was on 31 December 1910 by a Curtiss Biplane. [2]
The Hawaiian Islands are home to scientific research into astronomy, robotics and aerospace technology. Hawai'i is home to some of the world's largest telescopes, and the observatory located near the summit of Mauna Kea, the Big Island. The composition of the volcanic sand on the mountains of Hawaii has nearly the same chemical composition as the Moon. This allows for lunar missions to be tested on Earth first, before leaving the atmosphere. Hawaii is also home to U.S. astronaut Ellison Onizuka, and the Astronaut Ellison S. Onizuka Space Center. [7] At the ʻImiloa Astronomy Center is a museum dedicated to exploring and developing the link between Polynesian explorers and space exploration. NASA has announced a lunar research park in Hilo. [8] The University of Hawaii has provided volunteers for these missions in the past through PISCES. [9] The University of Hawaii has held student design competitions for models for space colonization.
Hawaiian Airlines is the largest locally operated airline. The airline started service on 6 October 1929 as Inter-Island Airways with a Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker. Go! Mokulele which is a joint venture between Mesa Airlines and Republic Airways Holdings provides inter-island service.
The General Aviation Council of Hawaii is headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.
All flight operations in Hawaii are conducted within FAA oversight. The Hawaii Air National Guard was activated in 1946. [10] The Honolulu Police Department started air operations in 1970. It currently operates two MD520 NOTAR helicopters. [11]
Hawaii is the largest island in the United States, located in the eponymous state of Hawaii. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands in the North Pacific Ocean. With an area of 4,028 square miles (10,430 km2), it has 63% of the Hawaiian archipelago's combined landmass. However, it has only 13% of the archipelago's population. The island of Hawaiʻi is the third largest island in Polynesia, behind the north and south islands of New Zealand.
Hilo is the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii, and is a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement in the state of Hawaii and largest settlement in the state outside of Oahu.
Ellison Shoji Onizuka was an American astronaut, engineer, and U.S. Air Force flight test engineer from Kealakekua, Hawaii, who successfully flew into space with the Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-51-C. He died in the destruction of the Space Shuttle Challenger, on which he was serving as Mission Specialist for mission STS-51-L. Onizuka was the first Asian American and the first person of Japanese origin to reach space.
Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, also known as Honolulu International Airport, is the main and largest airport in Hawaii. The airport is named after Honolulu native and Medal of Honor recipient Daniel Inouye, who represented Hawaii in the United States Senate from 1963 until his death in 2012. The airport is in the Honolulu census-designated place 3 miles (4.8 km) northwest of Honolulu's central business district. The airport covers 4,220 acres (1,710 ha), more than 1% of Oahu's land.
The Mauna Kea Observatories (MKO) are a group of independent astronomical research facilities and large telescope observatories that are located at the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi, United States. The facilities are located in a 525-acre (212 ha) special land use zone known as the "Astronomy Precinct", which is located within the 11,228-acre (4,544 ha) Mauna Kea Science Reserve. The Astronomy Precinct was established in 1967 and is located on land protected by the Historical Preservation Act for its significance to Hawaiian culture. The presence and continued construction of telescopes is highly controversial due to Mauna Kea's centrality in native Hawaiian religion and culture, as well as for a variety of environmental reasons.
Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keāhole is the primary airport on the Island of Hawaiʻi, located in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, United States. The airport serves leeward (western) Hawaiʻi island, including the resorts in North Kona and South Kohala. It is one of two international airports serving Hawaiʻi island, the other being Hilo International Airport on the windward (eastern) side.
The following is an alphabetical list of articles related to the U.S. state of Hawaii:
Island Air was a commuter airline based in Honolulu, Hawaii. It operated scheduled inter-island passenger services in Hawaii. Its main base was the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport on Oahu.
Hana Airport is a regional public use airport of the State of Hawaiʻi on the east shore of the island of Maui, three nautical miles northwest of the unincorporated town of Hana. The airport was officially opened on November 11, 1950. It is primarily a commuter facility used by unscheduled air taxis and general aviation. As air traffic increases, the Hawaiʻi State Legislature will consider future improvements including the construction of a taxiway paralleling the runway, widening of access roads and expansion of passenger terminals and parking facilities.
Hilo International Airport, formerly General Lyman Field, is a regional airport located in Hilo, Hawaiʻi, United States. Owned and operated by the Hawaii Department of Transportation, the airport serves windward (eastern) Hawaiʻi island including the districts of Hilo, Hāmākua and Kaʻū, and Puna. It is one of two international airports serving Hawaiʻi island, the other being Kona International Airport on the leeward (western) side.
Waimea-Kohala Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located one nautical mile southwest of Waimea, an unincorporated town in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States.
The Cradle of Aviation Museum is an aerospace museum located in Uniondale, New York on Long Island, established to commemorate Long Island's part in the history of aviation. It is located on land once part of Mitchel Air Force Base which, together with nearby Roosevelt Field and other airfields on the Hempstead Plains, was the site of many historic flights. So many seminal flights had occurred in the area that, by the mid-1920s, the cluster of airfields was already dubbed the "Cradle of Aviation", the origin of the museum's name.
Mid Pacific Air was a low-cost regional airline which began operations with passenger services in Hawaii. Founded in 1981, initial routes connected the islands of Kauai, O'ahu, Maui and Hawaii. Its primary competitors were established air carriers Hawaiian Airlines and Aloha Airlines. When it operated in the Midwest, its headquarters were on the grounds of Indianapolis International Airport in Indianapolis, Indiana. Originally its headquarters were located at Honolulu International Airport.
ʻImiloa Astronomy Center is an astronomy and culture education center located in Hilo, Hawaii. Conceived by founding Director George Jacob in 2001, it features exhibits and shows dealing with Hawaiian culture and history, astronomy, and the overlap between the two.
Go! was a regional brand of Arizona-based Mesa Airlines. Go! operated inter-island services within Hawaii. Its main base was Honolulu International Airport. It was a division within the Mesa Airlines subsidiary of Mesa Air Group and its flights were operated by Mesa Airlines. The airline ceased operations in Hawaii on April 1, 2014. The company slogan was Hawaii's Low Fare Airline.
Mokulele Airlines is a regional airline operating in Hawaii. The airline scheduled inter-island and charter flights, primarily between smaller airports and its hubs at Kahului Airport on the island of Maui and Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu on the island of Oahu. The airline was acquired by Southern Airways Express in 2019 but continues to operate under its own brand. Both Southern Airways and Mokulele Airlines are subsidiaries of Surf Air Mobility, which purchased Southern in 2023.
The Onizuka Center for International Astronomy, also known as Hale Pōhaku, is a complex of support facilities for the telescopes and other instruments that comprise the Mauna Kea Observatory atop Mauna Kea, on Hawaiʻi island.
Trans Executive Airlines of Hawaii is an American airline headquartered at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, Hawaii, operating cargo flights under the name Transair and passenger air charter and tour flights under the name Transair Global. The airline was started in 1982 by Teimour Riahi. As of 2019, the airline operated a fleet of six Boeing 737-200 and four Short 360 aircraft.
Charles Irving "Sam" Elliott (1892–1972) was a pioneer aviator in the Hawaiian Islands. As an airline pilot, he is credited with the first scheduled passenger flight between the Hawaiian Islands, the first scheduled airmail flight between the Hawaiian Islands, and the first scheduled cargo flight in the US/Hawaiian Islands.
Stanley Carmichael Kennedy Sr. was a US Naval Aviator during World War I, world record holder and Silver Star recipient, pioneer of commercial aviation in the Hawaiian Islands, and founder of Hawaiian Airlines, one of the world's oldest operating airlines. Kennedy ran Hawaiian Airlines from the time of its incorporation in 1929 until he stepped down from daily operations in 1955. He remained chairman of the board until his death in 1968.
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