Professor Steven Businger, chair of the Department of Atmospheric Services at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, believes that Kahului may experience powerful winds.



"The trouble is that Kahului is between Haleakala and the West Maui mountains, and that is a funnel for low level winds to come through," he said. "I think the strongest winds are going to be in that valley on Maui."



The training for Hawaiian Airlines' pilots includes flight simulators to help prepare them for severe weather scenarios, including hurricanes and tropical storms.



"Mostly our concerns with flight operations is related to winds, especially cross wind components so winds coming from the side of the aircraft," said Brian Beres, senior director for flight standards and qualifications. "And then rain, which can lead to low visibility."



The company is waiving reservation change fees for passengers on Hawaiian and its codeshare partners traveling through Hawaii from September 11-13 due to Olivia.



"There is a potential that it could drift, so we're mindful of that. If we make decisions too early in advance we could get it wrong and then we're impacting flights that might otherwise we could potentially run," said Rouse.