JWA listed as scary because of noise restrictions

John Wayne Airport has earned an unwanted distinction from a travel website that called it one of the world’s 11 scariest airports.

SmarterTraveler.Com listed JWA among a good number of Third World airports, including those in Honduras and Guatemala, as well as LaGuardia Airport in New York and Barra Airport in Scotland.

The travel site blamed the noise restrictions at the Santa Ana airport for the problems. Editors complained about the steep take-offs and reductions in engine power — strategies meant to limit the airport’s noise impact on homes in Newport Beach.

“Strict noise reduction requirements may not seem scary at first, but if you’re not expecting engine cutbacks during takeoff you might be spooked,” SmarterTravler.com wrote.

One source quoted in the story likened JWA takeoffs to “a space shuttle liftoff.”

The airport has long said it’s safe and that the takeoff procedure has worked for decades.

“We consistently have safe departures,” spokeswoman Rachel Gibson said. “There hasn’t been any incidents here with regards to the departure procedure. We’ve been working with the community and the FAA and we’ve been doing since the 1960s.”