JWA posts June increase in utilization
Airline passenger traffic at John Wayne Airport increased in June 2014 as compared to June 2013. In June 2014, the Airport served 820,986 passengers.
Commercial aircraft operations decreased 5.0%, while Commuter aircraft operations increased 93.4% when compared to the levels recorded in June 2013.
General aviation activity, which accounted for 69.6% of the total aircraft operations during June 2014, increased 18.2% when compared to June 2013.
Almost all of the commuter aircraft flights are on Skywest Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft configured for 70 passengers or less. Skywest operates as a partner to several major carriers such as United, US Air, American, Delta and Alaska. The small jets fly from John Wayne Airport to destinations around the west such as San Francisco, Denver and Salt Lake City.
Work suspended on Bob Hope Airport EIR - Burbank Leader
City officials have temporarily suspended work on a report studying the environmental impacts of constructing a new 14-gate terminal at Bob Hope Airport following unresolved differences between the city of Burbank and the airport.
The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority last week voted to defer considering making a payment of nearly $800,000 for the report, which includes the second half of the cost of the nearly $1.4 million report on the proposed terminal as well as potential development of the 58-acre parcel, known as the “B6” site, until Aug. 18.
The first payment was made when the city began preparing the report last November.
The authority will reconsider making the second payment next month, giving officials time to try to resolve their differences. The two parties have yet to reach consensus on the project’s description, as well as how many alternatives and what specific alternatives to study in the report, said airport spokesman Victor Gill.
One disagreement, according to the airport’s Executive Director Dan Feger, is whether to study potential governance changes in the report.
July 7 - July 13, 2014
LAX to spend $200 million to meet federal runway safety standards - LA Times
In a project designed to bring Los Angeles International Airport into compliance with federal safety standards, officials will spend about $200 million to expand and refurbish runway-buffer zones..
The plan calls for enhancing safety areas at the ends and sides of all four runways serving the nation's third-busiest airport. The flat, graded expanses provide aircraft with a critical buffer should they undershoot, overrun or veer off a runway.
Federal Aviation Administration officials have been working with airports to help them meet the standards by December 2015.
Last year, airport officials proposed separating LAX's two northern runways and adding a center taxiway, but community opposition and a lawsuit threaten the project.
June 30 - July 6, 2014
Grand Jury asks county supervisors to face difficult questions.
On June 27, the Orange County Grand Jury issued a report entitled Maximizing the Benefits of John Wayne Airport to Better Serve Orange County.
Essentially the Grand Jury asks county supervisors to consider whether the airport should serve the county, its businesses and the flying public, or the airport's neighbors in Newport Beach. It notes that the settlement agreement which limits the utilization of the county's airport will not allow it to meet projected future demand for air travel.
The county is preparing an environmental impact report in preparation for extending the limits on the airport's utilization. The options in the EIR were developed in confidential negotiations between county officials and Newport Beach groups.
The grand jurors looked to the future at new technology to reduce aircraft noise and ask that the airport limits be adjusted accordingly.
Suggestions are made for lengthening the runway in ways that were reported here in 2000.
The report, which so far has had little publicity in either the Register or Daily Pilot, raised questions last discussed more than a dozen years ago during the debate over converting the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station to commercial aviation use. At that time, county leaders and Newport Beach interests were adamant that the county needed considerably more airport capacity to sustain its growth.
Then as now, airport neighbors objected to expanding that capacity in their back yards.
Newport Beach wary of report pushing expansion of airport operations - LA Times
O.C. panel says caps on John Wayne Airport's operations restrict its economic impact
A recent report by the Orange County Grand Jury suggesting that John Wayne Airport's operating constraints are blunting its potential impact on the local economy is ruffling feathers in Newport Beach, where residents have long fought to keep the roar of jets over their homes to a minimum..
The report, which was released last week, comes as the county is in the midst of the environmental review phase of a process to extend the agreement that places caps on the airport's operations.
The grand jury, found that the operational limits keep the airport from capitalizing on growing demand for flights and becoming a greater contributor to a more robust county economy.
"The Settlement Agreement operating constraints significantly impair John Wayne Airport's ability to serve future demand," the report says.
The document recommends that county and airport officials consider opening up the curfews once newer models of jets are introduced that are quieter during takeoff.
Among the report's other recommendations are that officials explore changing the airport's name to John Wayne International Airport, and building a cellphone waiting lot for cars picking up passengers.
It also suggests lowering the airport's long-term parking fees to offset what it found were 3% to 24% more expensive commercial fares compared to other local airports.
Supervisor John Moorlach, whose district includes Newport Beach, said he hadn't had a chance to thoroughly review the report, but the title, "Maximizing the Benefits of John Wayne Airport to Better Serve Orange County," was disconcerting. He said he was disappointed that the grand jury hadn't spoken with him for the report.
"We're trying to find a fair balance between air carriers and the residents," he said. "And we're working diligently to have an extension to the settlement agreement that's fair to everybody."
Airport spokeswoman Courtney Wiercioch said that staff members were working with the county to weigh possible responses to go before the supervisors and that she couldn't comment on its findings.
Local airports battle for international flights - OC Register
Competition to add flights to Mexico and other popular destinations south of the border is heating up among Southern California’s regional airports.
Those smaller airports – which include John Wayne Airport, Long Beach Airport, Ontario International Airport, Palm Springs International Airport and San Bernardino International Airport – have seen some airlines cut service to marginal markets.
Mergers and liquidations have consolidated airlines and their fleets, reducing competition and pushing airfares upward. Airlines have concentrated operations in large, fortress hubs such as Los Angeles International, which has seen solid passenger gains.
Airport executives are looking to compensate by expanding service south of the border. They see tourists spending money again and immigrants whose wealth has grown in recent years.
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