Twenty people were taken to local hospitals with injuries ranging from lacerations, bruising and loss of consciousness to head injuries.
Thunderstorms were reported in the area at the time of the turbulence.
The United States National Transportation Safety Board announced it is investigating the incident.
There were two hundred and seventy eight passengers and ten crew on board the Airbus A330-200.
The incident on Flight HA35 happened on Sunday morning, shortly before the plane came in to land at Honolulu’s Daniel K Inouye International Airport.
