|
Early Aviation in Hawaii
The history of aviation in Hawaii from the early 1900's to
the present day.
Although the Hawaiian Islands may be located nearly 3,000 miles from the nearest
continent, Hawaii entered the age of aviation right along with its Mainland neighbors
when a daredevil named J. C. "Bud" Mars took off, circled and landed his plane on a
neighborhood polo field on New Year’s Eve 1910. He charged on-lookers to view the
flights, and left Hawaii for Japan mad, when thousands of freeloaders watched his
flights from nearby hilltops without paying.
Interest in aviation in Hawaii boomed from that moment on with a number of
adventurous souls making flights on Oahu and the Neighbor Islands. The first flight
between islands was made on March 15, 1918 when Army officer Maj. Harold M. Clark Jr.
flew to Molokai and back.
In 1919, the military were the first to establish a landing strip in Honolulu,
but it wasn’t until 1925 that a joint fund raising effort by the Chamber of
Commerce and the Territorial Legislature made Hawaii’s first airport a reality.
The landing along Keehi Lagoon was acquired for a sum of $27,410.
The airport was dedicated on March 21, 1927. The field was named in honor of the
late Commander John Rodgers, a naval aviator, who piloted the first aircraft to
reach Hawaii after an adventurous flight that ended with the plane landing in
the ocean and being sailed to the island of Kauai with fabric torn from the wings.
The 1927 Territorial Legislature also appropriated funds for further development
of John Rodgers Airport. As a result, aviation enterprises boomed in Hawaii.
Inter-Islands Airways (now known as Hawaiian Airlines) was organized in 1929 and
inaugurated service to the Neighbor Islands on November 11 of that year with three
eight-passenger amphibians, thus beginning the first dependable air transportation
service in Hawaii.
The first commercial airline flight from the mainland to Hawaii was on April 16,
1935 by a Pan American Airways Sikorsky S-42 seaplane. The trip from San Francisco
to Pearl Harbor took 17 hours and 14 minutes.
The military took over all airport operations during World War II, grounding all
civilian aircraft. The airport was returned to the Territory of Hawaii on
October 1, 1946 and renamed Honolulu Airport.
The following year, the Territorial Legislature formed the Hawaii Aeronautics Commission
to operate all airports in the Territory. Following Statehood in 1959, the Hawaii
Aeronautics Commission was abolished and its duties were taken over by the state
Department of Transportation on July 1, 1961.
With the introduction of jet service to Hawaii in 1959, the old terminal began bursting
at the seams. Construction of a new jet-age terminal began in February, 1959. The new
John Rodgers Terminal became operational on October 15, 1962. It is continually being
upgraded to accommodate modern jet aircraft and an increasing number of passengers.
As Hawaii’s tourism industry grew, so has the airport’s need for new gates and passenger
facilities. In 1993 a new Interisland Terminal was opened west of the Overseas Terminal
for Interisland flights. A new Commuter Terminal opened in 1991.
Honolulu International Airport is adjacent to Hickam Air Force base and though joint-use
agreements, the state and military share the runways.
After searching for several decades for a location for a new general aviation facility
to relieve crowded conditions at HNL, the state received 757 acres of surplus land at
Barbers Point Naval Air Station on July 1, 1999 to be used as a GA facility. The new
airport, named Kalaeloa Airport, is being used by general aviation aircraft to practice
pilot training, formerly done at Ford Island and HNL.
Article Courtesy of the Hawaii Department of Transportation
See also:
Aviation History of Hawaii
Air Travel in Hawaii
|
Related Links
Transportation in Hawaii - Main Menu
Islands of Hawaii
Hawaii for Visitors
A NOTE FROM KATHIE: If you have any corrections or updates to the information on
this page or if you would like us to add any information or
links, please send a message to the email
address on our
contacts page.
|
|
|
