John Wayne

Both terminals at John Wayne Airport were evacuated Sunday evening and passengers taken off airplanes after a female passenger made it past a security checkpoint without being screened, authorities said. As a result, hundreds of travelers were required to undergo a second security check, Nico Melendez of the Transportation Security Administration said.

Pressed to explain how Orange County can handle its travel needs without an airport at El Toro, a key south Orange County leader told a state Assembly committee Tuesday that John Wayne Airport should, instead, be tripled in size. Assemblywoman Patricia Bates said the county's existing airport could mushroom to handle an estimated 24 million passengers a year in 2020--a proposal once studied by the county but rejected as too expensive.

Two new daily flights to Kansas City could begin Wednesday from John Wayne Airport, if approved today by Orange County supervisors. Midwest Airlines is already booking passengers for the new flights, to be offered on 123-seat Boeing 717-200 jets. The airline hopes to operate out of leased space at the Delta Airlines counter. In June, supervisors approved the first major expansion of the number of airlines at John Wayne since 1990. Midwest would be the 11th airline authorized to use the airport.

Despite some discontentment with flight availability and fares, travelers gave high marks to John Wayne Airport in a survey released this week. When asked to rank their overall satisfaction with a letter grade, 95% of the 400 travelers questioned during a survey at the airport gave John Wayne an "A" or "B" rating. In a separate phone survey of 400 Orange County residents, 88% also gave the airport high marks.

A national rating bureau removed John Wayne Airport revenue bonds from credit watch this week, citing the airport's rebound from a loss of business after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Standard & Poor's placed the bonds on watch status Sept. 20, along with bonds from all other U.S. airports. Passenger traffic, which has bounced back faster at John Wayne than at other facilities, was down about 10% in 2001 from the year before.

Passenger traffic at John Wayne Airport in October jumped nearly 21% over the same time last year, airport officials said Wednesday. The latest figures show that 666,958 passengers used the facility in October, compared with 553,194 in October 2001. Also, passenger volumes for the year so far are up 7% from 6,168,388 in the first 10 months of 2001.

John Wayne impersonator Gene Howard will speak at Liberty Baptist Church on Sunday at 11 a.m. Howard will deliver several poems and bring a patriotic and spiritual message titled "Freedom and Sacrifice." Lunch will follow the free event, and a fair will be set up for children. The church is at 1000 Bison Ave., Newport Beach. Information: (949) 760-5444.

About 100,000 more passengers traveled through John Wayne Airport this April than in April 2003, officials said Monday. Airport officials said that each month in 2004 has set a record for the number of passengers who have passed through the airport. There were 766,924 passengers in April, a 16.1% increase from the same time last year. There were also more flights coming in and out of the airport, said Director Alan Murphy.

Its marble floors, arching ceilings and polished brass fixtures give John Wayne Airport a jet-age atmosphere and a roominess that Orange County officials hoped would serve increasing numbers of travelers for decades. The $310-million remake nine years ago--and continuing work since--transformed what had been a dilapidated terminal into a modern airport and a destination point for travelers nationwide.

America West Airlines plans to install an overnight maintenance operation at Orange County's John Wayne Airport to help boost the carrier's efficiency, an airline official said Friday. The Phoenix-based carrier plans to station six or seven mechanics and a supervisor in Orange County to perform regular maintenance on three America West planes that routinely sit overnight at John Wayne, which has an 11 p.m. curfew.