Finding mileage award seats and upgrades for First Class tickets to Hawaii on Delta is a formidable task, but the recent announcement of new non-stop routes from Los Angeles to Kona and Lihue brings new hope. What did our research find? Read on.

The new routes, scheduled to begin June 5, 2008, offer non-stop flights to Kona, Hawaii (big island) and Lihue, Kauai, originating from Los Angeles. Upgrade availability is abundant from June through October, but Delta's high upgradeable fares dampen the deal.

Delta's M-class, upgradeable economy fare for both routes is $1,175. With First Class fares of $1,783 for Lihue, and $1,969 for Kona, saving $600-$800 is not a great return on the 30,000 SkyMiles you have to burn for an upgrade.

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First Class upgrades on flights bound for Kona and Lihue from East Coast gateways such as Miami and New York might be more palatable because you cover a lot more ground, but the differential from M-class to First is very similar. Unless you have more miles than you know what to do with, spend them elsewhere. (Perhaps with Delta's SkyTeam partners Continental or Northwest.)

A free award seat is a more attractive alternative if you have 75,000 miles in the bank, but round-trip availability is slight even on this new route. You'll need to apply some creativity in flight planning.

In June, July, and October, there's a good supply of First Class award seats if you fly into Lihue, and fly back to Los Angeles from Kona (booking your own island hop in between). October also shows a good supply of award seats for Los Angeles-Kona round-trips.

Delta seems to have developed a formula for adding routes that offer little or nothing to the premium air traveler. In this case, new service to Kona and Lihue with high fares and meager opportunity for mileage upgrades and free seats is more of the same. Factor in a First Class cabin that barely achieves even the low marks associated with a Mass Market Carrier (MMC), and Delta has again lived up to our expectations.