NEWS BLOG - LATEST
HEADLINES
September 23 - September 29, 2013
JWA passenger traffic continues its recovery
August passenger traffic
continued its recovery in August. Year to date volume is up by 5
percent. A continuation of the trend will put the airport at
about 9.3 million passengers for the full 2013 year.
The airport's best year was 2007 when 9,979,699 passengers were
served. This preceeded the opening of the new third terminal.
The 850,988 passengers in August included 38,141 on international
flights.
September 16 - September 22, 2013
Bob Hope Airport officials present plans for new terminal
- Burbank Leader
Resident asks for more details on the proposed upgrades to 83-year-old
facility.
The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority revealed its plan for a
new 14-gate terminal this week, meant to replace the airport’s current
83-year-old building.
Airport officials say a new terminal is needed because the current
building is too close to the runways — 250 feet instead of the required
750 feet — to meet Federal Aviation Administration safety standards.
The proposed terminal would keep the same number of gates, but would
lose the “L” shape of the current building in favor of a symmetrically
configured rectangularly shaped terminal.
The new terminal would be placed to the east of the airport’s
north-south runway, and the old terminal would be demolished, with that
space being used to expand the runway taxi areas.
Due to provisions in Measure B, which was approved by Burbank voters in
2000, finalized plans for a new terminal must be approved by residents
at the polls.
LAX Targets Asian Travelers With $1.9 Billion Terminal Makeover
- Forbes
Asia
Commenting on Skytrax’s annual survey of the world’s best airports,
President Barack Obama lamented,“Not one–not one U.S. airport was
considered by the experts and consumers who use these airports to be in
the top 25 in the world,” in May. “I think Cincinnati airport [the
top-ranked U.S. airport] came in around 30th.”
One U.S. airport that is trying to change this is the Los Angeles
International Airport, or LAX. It is nearing the end of an eight-year,
$4.1-billion makeover that aims to transform what former Los Angeles
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called “the worst passenger experience of
any airport in a modern city” into his vision of a “first-class airport
experience.” The centerpiece of this mammoth project–now the largest
public works project in the country–is the $1.9 billion renovation of
Tom Bradley International Terminal, which handles more than 30 airlines
and serves half of LAX’s 17 million international passengers. It opens
Sept. 18.
One of the biggest challenges of the project was to express the city’s
identity through the terminal’s architecture. Inspired by Los Angeles’
beaches, the terminal is designed to resemble a cascading set of waves,
with a 60-foot-tall roof arching over an open, spacious concourse. The
generous use of glass structures also allows natural sunshine to flood
the terminal floor, reminding passengers of California’s pleasant
climate. (This also lowers operating costs and improves energy
efficiency, making Tom Bradley Terminal one of the few airport
buildings in the country to earn LEED Silver certification from the
U.S. Green Building Council.)
September 9 - September 15, 2013
Community is invited to help shape the future of Bob Hope Airport
As part of the ongoing program to obtain community input
and comments, the Bob Hope Airport will host a public workshop focusing
on the current terminal and the initial vision for a replacement
terminal at the Airport beginning at 6 p.m. on Sept. 16, 2013.
The 83-year-old terminal:
* Is too close to the runways to meet current safety
regulations, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
* Does not meet current earthquake standards
* Lacks many of the amenities available in more
modern terminals
The workshop will held in the Airport Skyroom (Terminal A, second
floor); validated parking in the Parking Structure will be provided.
If you are unable to attend this workshop but would like to express
your questions, comments, or concerns on the future of Burbank Bob Hope
Airport, please visit the Airport
Visioning Process page on the airport's website.
September 2 - September 8, 2013
Companies chosen to do [John Wayne] airport EIR reports -
Daily
Pilot
In anticipation of finalizing an extension to the John Wayne Airport
settlement agreement next year, the Orange County Airport Commission
has approved the selection of five companies to conduct environmental
impact reports.
The cost of the studies will be $955,810.
Three settlement agreement alternatives will also be analyzed by the
five companies. The alternatives are based on input from the Federal
Aviation Administration, the air carriers that currently operate at the
airport and information regarding the airfield and runway limitations
as they are now. At most, the alternatives allow for up 16.9 million
annual passengers passing through JWA by 2030.
The proposed agreement and all but one alternative would keep the
curfews in place until 2035. One alternative extends the curfews to
2020.
The original settlement agreement dates back to 1985 and was intended
to last through 2005. That settlement was amended in 2003 to provide
guidelines for airport growth through 2015.
Website Editor: If the past is
any indicator, after completing the study, the Board of Supervisors
will choose the "proposed
project" alternative that has already been pre-selected in
negotiations between the County and Newport Beach.
Numbers at Bob Hope Airport slide again -
Burbank Leader
Bob Hope Airport officials are dealing with a double dose of bad news
this week as the number of passengers using the airport slid by more
than 8% in July and the airport's largest carrier announced that it
will cut more than 40 flights at the Burbank airfield.
The airport handled 318,859 passengers in July, an 8.24% decrease
compared to 347,501 in July 2012, according to statistics released by
the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority on Tuesday.
The drop continues a summertime slump, with a decline of roughly 3.5%
in June. That was preceded by slight increases in May and March.
As the passenger numbers take a dive, the airport's largest carrier —
Southwest Airlines — recently told airfield officials it will
discontinue 42 round-trip flights from Burbank at the end of the month.
During the first seven months of 2013, roughly 2.2 million passengers
traveled through Bob Hope Airport, a 4.8% drop from roughly 2.35
million passengers during the same period last year.
Meanwhile, other airports in the region reported a mixed bag of
passenger totals in June. Los Angeles
International Airport and John
Wayne Airport saw 4.5% and 2.2% increases, respectively.
However, Ontario Airport
reported a 12% decline and Long Beach
Airport saw a 3% drop.
Click
here for previous news reports