Southwest takes off for Hawaii this month

Southwest Airlines plans to begin long-delayed service to Hawaii on March 17 with a flight from Oakland, California, to Honolulu.

An airline spokesman said Monday the flight was already sold out.

The airline begins flights to Kahului Airport on the island of Maui on April 7. Eventually it plans to serve four airports in Hawaii from Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento and San Diego.

The Dallas company plans to start daily inter-island hops between Honolulu and Kahului on April 28 and between Honolulu and Onizuka International Airport on Hawaii Island on May 12.

Southwest wanted to sell Hawaiian flights last year, but it took longer than expected to gain approval from the Federal Aviation Administration. That process was further delayed by the 35-day government shutdown that began late last year.