Lihu'e Airport
Encyclopedia
Lihue Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located in the Līhue CDP on the southeast coast of the island of Kauai
in Kauai County, Hawaii
, United States
, two nautical miles east of the center of the CDP.
The airport does not serve as a hub for any airline carrier. Numerous inter-island flights are available daily. During the 1970s, United Airlines
used Douglas DC-8
's between Los Angeles
and Lihue. American Airlines
, Delta Air Lines
, United Airlines
and US Airways
all utilize Boeing 757-200’s between Lihue and their mainland destinations. Alaska Airlines
and WestJet
utilize Next Generation Boeing 737-800’s between Lihue and their mainland destinations; while Hawaiian Airlines
uses Boeing 717-200’s between Lihue and Honolulu
. The airport's runway
can handle planes up to and including the size of a DC-10. The airport
is mostly un-walled, and the check in is completely outside.
The airport is the primary gateway to Kauai for visitors (especially tourists), and has several rental car facilities. Two movies have filmed scenes at the Lihue Airport. "Honeymoon in Vegas
" and "Six Days Seven Nights
".
of 153 feet (47 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt
paved runway
s designated 3/21 and 17/35, each measuring 6,500 by 150 feet (1,981 x 46 m). The airport also has one helipad
measuring 64 by 64 feet (20 x 20 m).
For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2005, the airport had 104,276 aircraft operations, an average of 285 per day: 48% air taxi
, 26% scheduled commercial
, 23% general aviation
and 2% military
. At that time there were 28 aircraft based at this airport: 43% single-engine
, 7% multi-engine and 50% helicopter
.
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
in Kauai County, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, two nautical miles east of the center of the CDP.
The airport does not serve as a hub for any airline carrier. Numerous inter-island flights are available daily. During the 1970s, United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
used Douglas DC-8
Douglas DC-8
The Douglas DC-8 is a four-engined narrow-body passenger commercial jet airliner, manufactured from 1958 to 1972 by the Douglas Aircraft Company...
's between Los Angeles
Los Angeles International Airport
Los Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually...
and Lihue. American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
, Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
, United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
and US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
all utilize Boeing 757-200’s between Lihue and their mainland destinations. Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines is an airline based in the Seattle suburb of SeaTac, Washington in the United States. The airline originated in 1932 as McGee Airways. After many mergers with and acquisitions of other airlines, including Star Air Service, it became known as Alaska Airlines in 1944...
and WestJet
WestJet
WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a Canadian low-cost carrier that provides scheduled and charter air service to 71 destinations in Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Founded in 1996, WestJet is currently the second largest Canadian air carrier, behind Air Canada, operating an average of...
utilize Next Generation Boeing 737-800’s between Lihue and their mainland destinations; while Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a major airline of the United States. It is the largest airline based in the State of Hawai'i, and is the 11th largest commercial airline in the country. Based in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu, the airline operates its main hub at Honolulu International...
uses Boeing 717-200’s between Lihue and Honolulu
Honolulu International Airport
Honolulu International Airport is the principal aviation gateway of the City & County of Honolulu and the State of Hawaii and is identified as one of the busiest airports in the United States, with traffic now exceeding 21 million passengers a year and rising.It is located in the Honolulu...
. The airport's runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
can handle planes up to and including the size of a DC-10. The airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
is mostly un-walled, and the check in is completely outside.
The airport is the primary gateway to Kauai for visitors (especially tourists), and has several rental car facilities. Two movies have filmed scenes at the Lihue Airport. "Honeymoon in Vegas
Honeymoon in Vegas
Honeymoon in Vegas is a 1992 comedy film directed by Andrew Bergman and starring Nicolas Cage, James Caan and Sarah Jessica Parker.-Plot:...
" and "Six Days Seven Nights
Six Days Seven Nights
Six Days Seven Nights is a 1998 adventure film. The screenplay was written by Michael Browning. The movie, filmed on location in Kauai, is directed by Ivan Reitman. It stars Harrison Ford, Anne Heche, David Schwimmer, Jacqueline Obradors, and Temuera Morrison...
".
Facilities and aircraft
Lihue Airport covers an area of 879 acres (355.7 ha) at an elevationElevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 153 feet (47 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
paved runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
s designated 3/21 and 17/35, each measuring 6,500 by 150 feet (1,981 x 46 m). The airport also has one helipad
Helipad
Helipad is a common abbreviation for helicopter landing pad, a landing area for helicopters. While helicopters are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard surface away from obstacles where a helicopter can safely...
measuring 64 by 64 feet (20 x 20 m).
For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2005, the airport had 104,276 aircraft operations, an average of 285 per day: 48% air taxi
Air taxi
An air taxi is an air charter passenger or cargo aircraft which operates on an on-demand basis.-Regulation:In the United States, air taxi and air charter operations are governed by Part 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations , unlike the larger scheduled air carriers which are governed by more...
, 26% scheduled commercial
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
, 23% general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
and 2% military
Military aviation
Military aviation is the use of aircraft and other flying machines for the purposes of conducting or enabling warfare, including national airlift capacity to provide logistical supply to forces stationed in a theater or along a front. Air power includes the national means of conducting such...
. At that time there were 28 aircraft based at this airport: 43% single-engine
Aircraft engine
An aircraft engine is the component of the propulsion system for an aircraft that generates mechanical power. Aircraft engines are almost always either lightweight piston engines or gas turbines...
, 7% multi-engine and 50% helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
.
Airlines and destinations
Top Destinations
| Rank | City | Passengers | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Honolulu, HIHonolulu International Airport Honolulu International Airport is the principal aviation gateway of the City & County of Honolulu and the State of Hawaii and is identified as one of the busiest airports in the United States, with traffic now exceeding 21 million passengers a year and rising.It is located in the Honolulu... |
712,000 | go!, Hawaiian, Island |
| 2 |  Los Angeles, CALos Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually... |
202,000 | American, Delta, United |
| 3 | Kahului, HI Kahului Airport Kahului Airport is a regional airport in the state of Hawai'i, located east of the Kahului CDP in Maui County on the island of Maui near Haleakala. Most flights into OGG originate from Honolulu International Airport; the Honolulu–Kahului corridor is one of the busiest air routes in the US,... |
67,000 | Hawaiian, Island |
| 4 | San Francisco, CA San Francisco International Airport San Francisco International Airport is a major international airport located south of downtown San Francisco, California, United States, near the cities of Millbrae and San Bruno in unincorporated San Mateo County. It is often referred to as SFO... |
61,000 | United |
| 5 |  Seattle, WASeattle-Tacoma International Airport The Seattle–Tacoma International Airport , also known as Sea–Tac Airport or Sea–Tac , is an American airport located in SeaTac, Washington, at the intersections of State Routes 99 and 509 and 518, about west of Interstate 5... |
57,000 | Alaska |
| 6 |  Phoenix, AZPhoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located southeast of the central business district of the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States... |
50,000 | US Airways |
| 7 |  Denver, CODenver International Airport Denver International Airport , often referred to as DIA, is an airport in Denver, Colorado. By land size, at , it is the largest international airport in the United States, and the third largest international airport in the world after King Fahd International Airport and Montréal-Mirabel... |
8,000 | United |
| 8 | Oakland, CA Oakland International Airport Oakland International Airport , also known as Metropolitan Oakland International Airport, is a public airport located south of the central business district of Oakland, a city in Alameda County, California, United States... |
7,000 | Alaska |
| 9 | San Jose, CA |
5,000 | Alaska |
| 10 |  Chicago, IL |
5,000 | - |
External links
- Lihue Airport at Hawaii Department of Transportation