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Posted: Thursday, December 30th, 2004 6:08 AM HST

Island Air to connect Hilo-Kona

By Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) _ Island Air is planning to launch daily service next month connecting the East and West sides of the Big Island. The carrier says it will begin flying the 21-minute route between Hilo and Kona on January tenth. Tickets will be priced at 20 dollars each way. Les Murashige, a vice president at Island Air, says he's confident there is solid demand for the service considering the soaring cost of fuel and hassle of driving the 90-mile route, which normally takes about two and a half hours. He says the new route should appeal to the growing number of Big Island residents who live in Hilo and work in Kona, as well as tourists who want to fly directly to the mainland from Kona. The new route is scheduled to depart Hilo at 8 a-m and return from Kona at 5:10 p-m. In addition to the Hilo-Kona service, Island Air is adding daily service between Kona and Lihue on Kauai. (Copyright 2004 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.)