Carrier group a welcome boost

By Sean Hao
Advertiser Staff Writer

The crew of the USS Nimitz prepares to disembark upon the ship's arrival at Pearl Harbor after an eight-month deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The crew of the carrier and its strike group are on shore leave. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

Daniel Boyer of San Diego held his son, Schuyler, 2 1/2, yesterday as they awaited the arrival of the USS Nimitz for its Hawai'i stopover at Pearl Harbor. Boyer's wife, Angela, serves on the Nimitz.

Waikiki restaurants, bars and shops such as ABC Stores are among the establishments likely to benefit from the shore leave that kicked off yesterday for the USS Nimitz carrier strike group.

With the latest visitor numbers showing sluggish growth over the past year, the carrier group's arrival comes at a fortuitous time.

"It's like having another convention coming in," said Paul Kosasa, president and chief executive of ABC Stores. "We know when these guys are in."

Just how much the added traffic adds to sales is hard to quantify, Kosasa said. But he said, "It's a nice little jump."

Each military visitor is expected to spend an average of $150 daily during the five-day visit. The figure matches the average daily expenditure of a tourist visiting the state.

Factoring in state multipliers meant to account for the indirect economic impact of that spending, the total benefit to the state of the Nimitz visit could amount to as much as $7.8 million as the military dollars ripple through the economy.

In addition to the military personnel in the carrier group, about 1,300 family members are visiting the Islands this week.

The Nimitz, the last aircraft carrier to take part in combat operations of Operation Iraqi Freedom, was deployed for eight months.

"Because they've been cooped up in a boat a while, they tend to enjoy themselves. They hang out around the pool, eat at our restaurants, and they do spend money," said Marty Milan, director of sales at the Ala Moana Hotel.

The hotel, which has 1,152 rooms, typically sees business improve about 10 percent during similar military visits, Milan said.

In May, almost 7,500 sailors from the USS Constellation and other vessels in its escort group arrived in Hawai'i after a seven-month deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reach Sean Hao at shao@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8093.