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August 17 - August 23, 2015

JWA continues to recover

Airline passenger traffic at John Wayne Airport increased in July 2015 when compared to July 2014. In July 2015, the Airport served 927,934 passengers, an increase of 10.8% when compared with the July 2014 passenger traffic count of 837,702.
Commercial aircraft operations increased 5.9%, while commuter aircraft operations decreased 6.6% when compared to July 2014 levels.

Year-to-date passenger volume is up 5.8% over last year.



August 10 - August 16, 2015

Local control just the beginning in difficult ONT turnaround-  Inland Daily Bulletin
 
Now that the city of Los Angeles has agreed to h
and over the airport’s management from Los Angeles World Airports to the Ontario International Airport Authority, the onus of halting ONT’s downward spiral and converting it to long-term success rests on the authority’s shoulders.

Crucial to ONT’s revival, as Rep. Norma Torres, San Bernardino County CEO Greg Devereaux and others have pointed out, will be that inland residents use the local airport — even when it costs more or involves another stop compared to LAX.

There’s little doubt that ONT suffered from LAWA’s neglect the past few years, but the Great Recession and airlines’ migration toward major hubs were also factors in the airport’s drop from 7.2 million passengers in 2007 to 4.1 million in 2014.

Everyone agrees that ONT needs lower fees to attract new airlines and more flights from the carriers that already use the airport.

The airport authority plans to hire a “high-powered,” experienced airport manager to run ONT. That is certainly wise. As good a job as Ontario and the authority did in getting L.A. to agree to a deal, they are unprepared to manage a major airport.

That new ONT director will need to implement a many-faceted approach to building ONT traffic.

We’ll dredge up a couple of much more modest ground transportation plans we’ve pitched in past editorials: a comfortable, air-conditioned shuttle bus from ONT to Disneyland, and smaller shuttles between ONT and the Metrolink stations in Rancho Cucamonga and east Ontario.
 

Website Editor:  We have pointed out the need for ground transportation to Ontario many times, and especially to and from Disneyland.  Newport Beach also has been an advocate for this, to reduce air travel at John Wayne.  They will be delighted to help.



August 3 - August 9, 2015

Settlement agreement announced to transfer Ontario Airport
- Ontario media release

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Ontario Mayor pro Tem Alan D. Wapner announced a Settlement Agreement Term Sheet has been signed which will lead to the transfer of ownership of LA/Ontario International Airport (ONT) to the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA) subject to approvals by the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners, Los Angeles City Council, Ontario City Council, the OIAA and the Federal Aviation Administration.

In a joint statement issued at a news conference at ONT, Garcetti and Wapner said the Settlement Term Sheet adheres to the premise that Los Angeles and Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) will be reimbursed to the extent needed to make them whole regarding investments they have made in ONT, while providing job protection to the airport's current employees. A long form settlement agreement consistent with the initial term sheet will be prepared within 60-days.  A formal approval process is expected to begin in October 2015, with the entire process, including FAA approval, expected to be completed within one year.




SCAG tunes 2040 regional aviation forecasts to the Newport Beach - OC Settlement Agreement


The Southern California Association of Government staff reports, "John Wayne Airport (SNA): 12.5 MAP is the agreed upon forecast demand by the County of Orange, John Wayne Airport staff and SCAG staff for 2040. The range of numbers previously shown (9.6 - 13.8 MAP) was meant for discussion purposes. Staff recognizes the Settlement Agreement as being legally enforceable, and this collaboration is largely an administrative fix to the draft forecast." 

In other words, Orange County has asked that the planners use the JWA caps, negotiated with Newport Beach, limiting the airport to 12.5 MAP in 2030 as though they represent a permanent demand level. 

The regional airports' shares of aviation demand in the SCAG plan will be as follows with both LAX and John Wayne serving smaller parts of the total demand in the future:
Shares


July 27 - August 2, 2015

LAX could see more than 100 million travelers a year by 2040
- LA Times

New aviation forecasts predict that Los Angeles International Airport, already straining under a record number of passengers, could have more than 100 million travelers annually by 2040, far more than the ceiling set by a 2006 court settlement that will soon expire.

According to projections released last week, the Southern California Assn. of Governments estimates that between 78.9 million and 100.7 million passengers a year will eventually pass through the nation's second-busiest commercial airport. LAX, the leading international gateway on the West Coast, had 70.7 million passengers last year.

Overall, the regional planning agency predicts that a dozen commercial airports within its six-county jurisdiction will handle between 136 million and 138 million travelers annually by 2040.

The forecast represents at least a 55% increase in air travelers since 2013, but the estimate is significantly less than the prediction of 170 million annual passengers by 2030 that the association made more than a decade ago.

Researchers said the downward revisions stemmed from slowing population growth and events since 9/11 such as sharp increases in fuel costs and the worst economic recession since World War II.

The projections for other major airports in the region indicate that the Burbank Airport will have 6.3 million to 7.3 million passengers a year by 2040; Long Beach 5 million to 6.2 million; LA/Ontario International 7.2 million to 19 million; and John Wayne Airport in Orange County 9.6 million to 13.8 million.

John Wayne, however, has an official cap of 12.5 million annual passengers that expires in 2030.

SCAG is using the new projections to prepare the aviation element of the association's 2016-2040 Regional Transportation Plan, which includes airports in Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.

Committee members were particularly interested in how long Los Angeles World Airports, which operates LAX, would honor the 2006 court settlement with airport neighbors that set a cap of 78.9 million annual passengers but expires in 2020. The agreement stemmed from a lawsuit challenging the airport redevelopment plan of former Mayor James Hahn.

The 100-million-travelers forecast is important for LAX, which has surpassed its previous record of 67.3 million passengers set in 2000. The growth combined with new airport construction is already causing heavy traffic congestion in the terminal area during peak travel times and has raised concerns that surrounding city streets will become inadequate in the future.

SCAG's other forecasts show that Oxnard Airport in Ventura County and Imperial County Airport each could have 200,000 annual airline passengers by 2040, while Palmdale Regional Airport, which is now closed, might have up to 1.5 million.


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