LIHU‘E — The number of people getting off domestic flights at Lihu‘e Airport climbed past 78,000 in August, marking the second highest total ever for the month.
A total of 78,648 passengers deplaned domestic flights in August, compared with 83,331 in August 2022, according to data compiled by the state of Hawai‘i’s Department of Business, Economic Development &Tourism.
The 2022 figure ranks first for the month of August. The 2021 total of 70,994 rounds out the top three for the month of August.
The August 2023 total also included the highest one-day total ever at the airport with 3,827 people offboarding domestic flights on Friday, Aug. 4. Data is subject to revision.
The count only includes passengers from direct domestic flights, including Kaua‘i residents returning home, and excludes the thousands of visitors arriving by inter-island air each month.
That means visitors arriving from neighboring islands aren’t accounted for in the domestic deplanement total even if their flight originated in the Lower 48, nor are passengers on flights from Canada.
For the eight-month period ended Aug. 31, the domestic passenger count measured 582,347. That was down 9.40 percent from 624,780 in the eight-month period ended Aug. 31, 2022.
Of note, the passenger count exceeded 900,000 for the first time in an annual period last year, as it ended up at 910,558 for the 12-months ended Dec. 31, 2022. The previous high of 772,705 was set in 2018, followed by 770,934 in 2019, department data showed.
Looking ahead, the domestic passenger count stood at 24,805 as of Sept. 12 — the most recent figure available — for an average of 2,067 passengers per day. Should that pace hold up, then it would mark the second highest total for the month of September at Lihu‘e Airport.
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Wyatt Haupt Jr., editor, can be reached at 808-245-0457 or whaupt@thegardenisland.com.
