John Wayne Airport (IATA Airport Code SNA)is located in southern Orange County, California, between the cities of Santa Ana, Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, and Irvine. It serves both general and commercial aviation for Orange County and the Los Angeles metropolitan region. Originally named simply the Orange County Airport, the Orange County Board of Supervisors renamed it to honor the actor John Wayne in 1979. In 2004, a member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, Chris Norby, tried to get the name changed to The O.C. Airport, John Wayne Field, because of the popularity of the TV series The O.C.. He backed down after receiving some negative publicity and angry responses from Orange County residents.

John Wayne Airport is served by eleven commercial airlines and four commuter airlines. It has one main terminal, the Thomas F. Riley Terminal, named for the County Supervisor who had lobbied for the airport's expansion in the 1980s. The Riley Terminal is divided into two concourses, A and B. A separate terminal serves general aviation.

The first airstrip on the grounds was constructed in 1923, when Eddie Martin founded a flying school on land owned by the Irvine Company. It was purchased through a land swap by the County of Orange in 1939 and remains under the County's ownership and management.

On June 19, 1950, the first commercial drag strip, the Santa Ana Drag, was started on a runway at the airport and ran every Sunday. Due to increased air traffic, the strip was forced to close in 1959.

On August 16, 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255, which was flying from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport near Detroit, Michigan to John Wayne Airport with an intermediate stop at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, Arizona, crashed after takeoff in Detroit, killing all of the passengers except for a young girl.

Population and economic growth in the region spurred expansion and remodeling projects in 1974, 1980, 1982, and 1990. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, a new airport was proposed on the nearby site of the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. The proposal was defeated however and no new airport was built.

In 2003, SNA served 8,535,130 persons and 15,406 tons of air cargo. Additionally, 2003 saw 249,551 takeoffs and landings by general aviation.

Commercial airlines serving John Wayne Airport

• Alaska Airlines
• Aloha Airlines
• America West
• American Airlines
• Continental Airlines
• Delta Air Lines
• Frontier Airlines
• Midwest Airlines
• Northwest Airlines
• Southwest Airlines
• United Airlines

External links

• John Wayne Airport Homepage (http://www.ocair.com/)