Off to Molokai

One of our goals while we're here was to get over to see Molokai. With the baby on the way, we decided it better be sooner than later. Earlier this summer we began planning our trip and Noel warned me that the cheapest flights from Oahu to Molokai “are all on small planes.” I balked at first and said I wouldn’t go on one, but then he explained that most of the larger carriers farm out flights to small planes anyway, so we didn’t have much choice. Plus we’d save about $50 bucks. So I reluctantly agreed to let him book whatever he thought best, just don’t tell me about it! Of course, we get past security and Noel says, “You know we’re on a pretty small plane…”
Flying inter-island on small carriers from HNL does have a few advantages: parking, check-in, and security are super easy. You’re far from the masses heading back to the Mainland or Japan in an entirely different building across the street from the main airport. Our pilot - who we had to have had five years on - met us at the gate and took our tickets and then walked us out to the plane. His safety speech (issued while the engine was warming up and he was turned around in the pilot’s seat) was, “Don’t inflate your life vest until you’re in the water. Read the safety card for the rest of the instructions.” Our pilot on the return trip - again, we had five years on him - just said, “You can use the [safety] card as a fan.”
Another advantage with small planes is that you fly relatively low, so the aerial views of Honolulu, Waikiki, Diamond Head, Hawaii Kai, and Hanauma Bay were great. Noel got very excited and got out his camera and said, “You can put this in our blog!” And here they are. Diamond Head and Waikiki are below.
Molokai’s airport is in the middle of the island, giving us a good fly over of the area before we landed. I was really surprised it looked like a very harsh landscape. Not tropical at all, a lot of red dirt and flat terrain. I caught myself thinking, “Well, if we go down we won’t disappear into a forest and they will be able to find the wreckage quickly!”
The return trip via Pacific Wings is not for the fearful flyer…after re-tracing our outbound route over Waikiki and Honolulu, the pilot made a tight near-180 degree turn at what seemed like a 45-degree angle, hovering over the airport and adjacent crystal blue bays. Luckily, like the flight itself, the approach/landing didn’t last long. If you’ve got a yearning to see Molokai for yourself and you’re not into small planes, head to Maui first and then book a ticket on a ferry that runs from Maui to Molokai. (It’s not the Superferry. This service has been running many years.) Or do a little homework. Larger planes do fly into Molokai, so you can find out what island they depart from and start your trip there.