Hawaiian Airlines yesterday inaugurated daily nonstop service between Honolulu and Oakland, Calif., its 10th gateway city in the Western U.S.

The departure from Oakland yesterday morning and the departure of the return flight from Honolulu in the afternoon featured boarding gate ceremonies with Hawaiian music and hula, fresh dendrobium orchid lei for passengers, and a traditional Hawaiian blessing by Kahu Richard Kamanu. The flight departing Oakland was also honored with a ceremonial water arch by the airport fire department as it taxied to the runway.

"This is good news for Hawai'i's visitor industry. The easy accessibility of Oakland's airport and Hawaiian's record as an industry service leader makes this an attractive pairing for East Bay residents to think Hawai'i when making travel plans," said Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian's president and chief executive officer.

The new flights will provide an estimated 95,000 air seats annually from Oakland to Hono-lulu, helping to fill the void left by the sudden closure of Aloha and ATA airlines last month.

Hawaiian has served the Bay Area with nonstop flights to Hawai'i from San Francisco for more than two decades, as well as from San Jose since 2005, but yesterday's flights marked the airline's first scheduled air service from Oakland.

Hawaiian's Flight 47 departs Oakland daily at 9 a.m. and arrives in Honolulu at 11:05 a.m. Return Flight 48 departs Hono-lulu daily at 1:30 p.m. and arrives in Oakland at 9:25 p.m.