JWA launches more travelers than ever

Alicia Robinson

More travelers used John Wayne Airport in 2004 than ever before, a

trend that is likely to bring the number of air passengers within

spitting distance of the 10.3 million annual passenger cap this year.

More than 9.2 million people passed through the airport in 2004,

an increase of 8.6% compared with 2003, airport officials reported.

If passenger levels increase similarly this year, the total will top

10 million by year’s end.

The cap of 10.3 million annual passengers is part of a legal

agreement that governs the number of flights and passengers the

airport can serve. The agreement was renegotiated in 2003, raising

the cap from 8.4 million passengers a year to 10.3 million annual

passengers though 2011.

The number of passengers using John Wayne Airport showed strong

monthly gains throughout last year, increasing an average of 5.8%

over the fourth quarter. The fourth-quarter average growth was bigger

in 2003 -- 12.6% -- but that’s when airport officials first allocated

the higher capacities in the new cap.

The continued growth is attributable to the healthy local economy

and improvements at the airport, airport spokesman Justin McCusker

said.

“These are economic issues -- the local economy being strong, the

airlines offering attractive fares,” he said. “We believe that some

of what we offer here with expanded checkpoints are attractive to

potential fliers when they’re choosing the airport to fly in and out

of.”

Airport activist Tom Naughton predicts John Wayne Airport will

reach its passenger cap within the next year. The airport will have

to closely manage passenger levels throughout 2005, and limited

capacities will mean higher ticket prices and eventually a lack of

seats on flights, he said.

“We’re running out of capacity, and if you run out of capacity

it’s just like any other economic problem,” he said. “When [the

airlines] have a capacity restraint, then gradually they can increase

the prices to address that.”

John Wayne isn’t the only airport suffering growing pains. Demand

for travel increased elsewhere in Southern California last year also,

with Los Angeles International Airport reporting its highest increase

in passenger levels since 1978. The airport served more than 60.6

million travelers in 2004.

Those who oppose further growth at John Wayne Airport are banking

on state or federal officials to relieve their jet lag. A bill now in

the state Senate would create the Los Angeles Regional Airport

Authority, which some hope would have the power to set up an airport

at the closed El Toro Marine Air Corps Station or elsewhere in the

region.

It’s hard to say what a regional airport authority will be able to

do before the bill is fleshed out, said Jack Wagner, executive

director of the Orange County Regional Airport Authority, a joint

powers group that has supported an airport at El Toro.

What is clear is that more airport capacity is needed in the

region, with a 52-million passenger capacity shortfall predicted by

2030, Wagner said.

“If you don’t build the facilities, the cities and communities

die,” he said. “It’s not just inconvenience. It’s not just higher

fares. It’s going to affect jobs and the economy.”

* ALICIA ROBINSON covers government and politics. She may be

reached at (714) 966-4626 or by e-mail at

alicia.robinson@latimes.com.