Honolulu Airport Transit time

[Tedferg]

We are returning from Sydney to Sacramento with a 1:30 stop in Honolulu. I assume we will clear Customs, Immigration and possibly a terminal change. I wonder if an hour and a half is enough time. I am hoping Hawaiian Airlines would not suggest this itinerary if it was risky. We have had bad experiences of making transits in Newark, but maybe that is just Newark. Anyone with experience masking this transit? We do have Global Entry and TSA Precheck.

[Cruise Raider]

Not a direct answer to your question but this should help.  The Global Entry and TSA will be of benefit to you and it sounds as though 90 minutes should be enough time.  
 

The busiest times at HNL checkpoints are generally 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The busiest days to travel locally and nationally are Thursdays and Fridays as well as Sundays and Mondays. TSA strives to get travelers through the general security screening process in less than 30 minutes and through TSA PreCheck screening in less than 10 minutes.

[PacnGoNow]

1 hour ago, Tedferg said:

We are returning from Sydney to Sacramento with a 1:30 stop in Honolulu. I assume we will clear Customs, Immigration and possibly a terminal change. I wonder if an hour and a half is enough time. I am hoping Hawaiian Airlines would not suggest this itinerary if it was risky. We have had bad experiences of making transits in Newark, but maybe that is just Newark. Anyone with experience masking this transit? We do have Global Entry and TSA Precheck.

What airline are you connecting with in HNL?  HA shows their min connection time is 2 hours International to

domestic on their website.  I would just double check that.  You can leave ok at their schedules from Sydney

to Sacramento via HNL and see if yours are shown as a bookable connection.  If it is, then they are making an exception.

 

To add:  I do show that is their regular schedule if it’s HA to HA, 1.5 hours is a legal connection.  So, you should be fine, unless the SYD flight is late.  

Edited July 13, 2023 by PacnGoNow

[SCX22]

I have done this connection before, but to SFO.  I had a scheduled 1.75 hours for my connection per the Hawaiian schedule.  My flight to SYD was late in arriving and I only ended up having 45 minutes for my connection.  Long story short, I didn't make it to my SFO flight that day and because the flight to SFO was sold out the following day, I had to be rebooked on the flight to OAK.  The up side was that Hawaiian put me up at the Marriott in Waikiki for the night.  

 

Ditto on the busiest TSA checkpoint times.  Hawaiian (and most other U.S. airlines) has large bank of flights to North America departing between 12:00 and 14:00.  

 

Hawaiian recommends a 2 hour transit time in Honolulu for international to North America flight.  Not sure why they are selling this as a legal connection.

 

[PacnGoNow]

13 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

I have done this connection before, but to SFO.  I had a scheduled 1.75 hours for my connection per the Hawaiian schedule.  My flight to SYD was late in arriving and I only ended up having 45 minutes for my connection.  Long story short, I didn't make it to my SFO flight that day and because the flight to SFO was sold out the following day, I had to be rebooked on the flight to OAK.  The up side was that Hawaiian put me up at the Marriott in Waikiki for the night.  

 

Ditto on the busiest TSA checkpoint times.  Hawaiian (and most other U.S. airlines) has large bank of flights to North America departing between 12:00 and 14:00.  

 

Hawaiian recommends a 2 hour transit time in Honolulu for international to North America flight.  Not sure why they are selling this as a legal connection.

 

Yes, it is 2 hours, but some exceptions do apply.  Evidently, this is one of them.

 

I would definitely want 2 hours, but it’s up to @Tedferg.

FYI their SYD flight is late today, about an hour late.

[Tedferg]

We are with Hawaiian Airlines and this still shows as a valid flight on their site with 1:30 layover. Arrives 10:35 am and leaves 12:05 pm. Busy time of day! I was hoping there would not be a terminal change and perhaps avoid TSA check.

How do you check flight performance?

Edited July 13, 2023 by Tedferg

[SCX22]

4 minutes ago, Tedferg said:

We are with Hawaiian Airlines and this still shows as a valid flight on their site with 1:30 layover. Arrives 10:35 am and leaves 12:05 pm. I was hoping there would not be a terminal change and perhaps avoid TSA check.

 

The D and F gates are the only gates capable of handing international arrivals because they are the ones connected immigration, so you will most likely have to change terminals.  Luckily, Honolulu is a very compact airport.  No choice but to exit the secure zone after re-checking checked baggage, so you will have to re-clear TSA to get to your connecting flight's gate.

[Tedferg]

11 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

The D and F gates are the only gates capable of handing international arrivals because they are the ones connected immigration, so you will most likely have to change terminals.  Luckily, Honolulu is a very compact airport.  No choice but to exit the secure zone after re-checking checked baggage, so you will have to re-clear TSA to get to your connecting flight's gate.

OK thanks, great responses, amazing the amount of information available here.