No reason a 737 can't...

I don’t believe AQ ever flew NGs interisland regularly. NGs were operated on ETOPS flights starting in 2000. I checked so online anlurces and no mention of NG interisland flying.

Having said that, you could set up the -200 steam gauges for the next leg while taxiing in to the gate and those JT8Ds started up in about 10 seconds. I imagine the DC9 was the same way on the HAL side.

Did those engines not have the 3 minute start up and cool down limitation that most other engines have?

This isn't 1982 where 20 minute turns are done. Who cares if you can prep a plane during the taxi in for the next leg or if an engine takes 2 or 3 minutes to start. It takes 30 minutes to board a plane today and safety demos take longer than the engine starts. I find it hard to believe that a 737NG can't replace the 717.

I don't disagree. I am simply asking the question.

Same seat capacity, less frequency… 717 quick turns won’t be as necessary to maintain a daily schedule.

How much money does inter-island make? With the amount of frequency and lots of open seats, I can’t imagine it does that well.

I have flown both planes. There is no difference in turn times between a 717 and a 737. I am curious what the utilization factor is for the 717s. I am pretty sure Delta 737s out of ATL can match it. Plenty of short hops there too.

717s turn in about 25-35 minutes. 737s I flew interisland did the same turn times, but it was all cargo. Interisland could trim a few flights, but frequency is very important for the islands. It’s like our bus system over water.

I think eventually the 717s and 321s will be replaced by 737s. 717s will be the first to be replaced. Probably gonna be the same category for bidding with a mix of interisland only pairings and west coast only pairings. Throw in some pairings that have tag legs to HNL once you arrive at an outerisland. We’ve already started having a few of those on the schedule lately. Relatively large amount of 737s based in HNL all painted in Hawaiian livery to make us feel better.

man I hate this merger.