Southwest Airlines wins approval to launch long-awaited Hawaii flights

It was the shot of good vibes that Southwest Airlines needed in what's been an otherwise turbulent February.

The Dallas-based carrier said Wednesday that it won government approval to begin flights from four California cities to Hawaii, capping a long effort to fly to the popular vacation destination.

Southwest's chief operating officer, Mike Van de Ven, told employees the Federal Aviation Administration granted authorization to operate its Boeing 737 planes on long, over-water flights. That approval had been delayed by the government shutdown.

The company will announce when it'll begin flights and ticket sales in the coming days. Southwest describes Hawaii as its No. 1 priority for 2019.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/business/southwest-airlines/2019/02/27/southwest-airlines-wins-approval-start-long-awaited-hawaii-flights