First Seats 01E & 01F
Happily installed in the first-class part of the plane for the short 40 minutes from Kona to Honolulu. I scanned the baggage being loaded to see if my bike was loaded. I was somewhat concerned when I did not see it, but I did not worry too much. If my bike was not in HNL when I arrived it was going to be an inconvenience rather than anything else, and I would deal with that from when I had to deal with it.
We sat back and enjoyed the comfort on the seats while the rest of the plane boarded. The crew came round and asked what we would like to drink during the flight.
Once everyone was boarded the ramp was removed from the front door, and the door closed. A few last bags were loaded, and we pushed back from the gate and made our way to the end of runway 17 for our departure. In a small plane like a Boeing 717, the 3.3 km runway at KOA seems impressively long.
Soon we were climbing out of KOA airport and a shart turn to the right had us heading northwest towards HNL. I had prebooked the right-hand side of the plane for everybody so we could get the great views of Maui and Waikiki.
While the views were great, unfortunately, my photos were not, I must try to do better in the future.
The crew were attentive and drinks and nibbles were served. But before long the nose was pointing downwards and we had started our descent to HNL airport. There was a last tight right-hand turn as we lined up on runway 08L. It was then a quick taxi to gate 57 for our on-time arrival.
The interisland flights always seem like just getting the bus.
16th October 2017
Our Holidays 