I didnt realize Alaska did a Bellinham-Vegas - has that been going on for a while? I always just look at Allegiant.......
Bellingham airport to offer daily flights to Honolulu
Alaska Airlines hopes to lure travellers from B.C.
Alaska Airlines announced Monday it hopes to lure Metro Vancouver travellers by offering low-fare, non-stop daily flights from Bellingham International Airport (BIA) to Honolulu.
The flights, set to begin Jan. 7, will be the first time scheduled flights will be offered from Bellingham to Hawaii. They will be aimed primarily at travellers in northwest Washington and the growing number of B.C. residents making the short trek to Bellingham to take advantage of lower fares.
Travellers will fly on Boeing 737-800 aircraft, which accommodate 157 passengers.
"A heavy amount of the focus, we suspect, will be from the Lower Mainland," Joe Sprague, Alaska Airlines' vice-president of marketing, said in an interview. "That has been the trend for Bellingham. And Hawaii is a very popular destination for residents of Western Canada."
Sprague said ticket prices, which will be rolled out Thursday, will be competitive.
"I can tell you the fares will be very, very attractive. It will be among the lowest fares you can find to get from the West Coast to Hawaii. We'll have some terrific prices."
Sprague said Alaska Airlines will also offer all-inclusives, including flights, accommodation, transfers and tours.
He noted that Alaska Airlines now offers flights to Las Vegas from Bellingham, attracting a large percentage of B.C. travellers. "It's in excess of 50 per cent and growing."
He expects the same will hold true for their Hawaii flights.
Sprague said Alaska Airlines will target B.C. travellers with a "fun promotion" in Metro Vancouver locations on Thursday. "We'll have our sales and marketing teams in various locations."
Monday's announcement comes as Bellingham International Airport reconstructs its runway and taxiway as part of a $29-million project that will allow the airport to handle planes as large as a 757.
The expansion is anticipated to increase the number of both U.S. and Canadian flyers heading to destinations throughout the U.S.
The project -- the largest construction project in the 90-year history of the Port of Bellingham -- will include rehabilitation of the runway and reconstruction and widening of the parallel taxiway. It is expected to be completed later this year.
Another $28 million is being spent over the next five years rehabilitating the commercial terminal.
Art Choat, director of aviation for the Bellingham airport, said Monday the Alaska Airlines announcement is "a big deal" for the airport and that the expanded terminal bodes well for the new service.
"This gives us more urgency for our terminal renovation," Choat said. "Our current terminal is 29,000 square feet. It will go to 90,000 square feet and will support half a million passengers a year. It will give us the ability to better handle the volumes using BIA."
Choat said the airport has seen strong growth over the last few years and that it's expected to have about 375,000 outbound passengers this year. He said the new Alaska Airlines service will provide a cost-effective alternative for B.C. residents.
Read more:
http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Belli...onolulu/3352708/story.html#ixzz0vZizRUXO
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This might interest some ... coming up in September
Maybe that WILL make a difference. Thanks for posting that
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