John Wayne Airport (SNA) is dealing with the headwind of a unique passenger capacity limit while closing out a strong 2023.
Annual passenger cap by legal settlement
John Wayne Airport (SNA) according to its official website has operated since 1985 under a legal settlement with Orange County, Newport Beach, and community organizations Airport Working Group and Stop Polluting Our Newport. The settlement agreement has since been amended by mutual agreement of all parties several times, most notably in 2003 and 2014.
The settlement agreement’s 2014 amendments in the current phase 2 allow for 11.8 million annual passengers through the airport’s gates annually until December 31, 2025. Since SNA is reaching the cap, SNA management reached out to airlines to advise of a need to reduce aircraft capacity or start losing slots.
One should remember that SNA is in the center of an urban area and very sensitive to aircraft noise, with a primary runway only 5,700 feet long – a bit shorter than most commercial airport runways. However, SNA’s perseverance comes from attempts to accommodate community concerns while providing quality service.
As AnnaSophia Servin, airport spokesperson, explained in the Orange County Register,
“The current situation, created by a historic surge in passenger numbers and concerns about approaching the MAP (million annual passenger) limit, is unique to the ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and has not been experienced before.”
One might add that the Pacific Airshow every fall at Huntington Beach close by might increase demand for flying into SNA. But ultimately, as airport supervisor Katrina Foley was quoted in the Orange County Register,
“That’s good news. Travel is back. People are flying. People are visiting. Tourists are coming in and out of the community. But the concern is, how do we keep the passenger cap in check so that we don’t have to cancel flights because you would disrupt people’s holiday plans.”
Therefore, let’s look at how one major US airline is responding.
How is Alaska Air responding?
The Alaska Air Group includes both the mainline Alaska Airlines and the regional subsidiary Horizon Air. The Alaska Pilots Podcast last week touched upon the subject.
As union scheduling committee chairman Scott Rubin explained, this was a capacity issue, and flights could be canceled – most likely operated by Horizon Air or possibly contractually by SkyWest Airlines – both of whom use 76-seat Embraer E175s. Rubin explained the matter was one of capacity – again, due to the cap – and that the airline would attempt to resolve the issue by downgrading from 737-800s to 737-700s plus canceling Horizon Air and SkyWest Airlines flights if necessary. Below is a table comparing 737-800 versus 737-700 seating capacity:
| Seating Class | 737-700 | 737-800 |
| First | 12 | 12 |
| Premium | 18 | 30 |
| Economy | 94 | 117 |
| Totals | 124 | 159 |
As one can see, that’s a loss of 35 seats with each flight downgraded to the 737-700. However, the author recently got to fly economy on Alaska Airlines’ 737-700 and enjoyed the little but mighty jet.
Ultimately, as the Alaska Air Group newsroom explained to Simple Flying, management did craft a solution for the 2023 holiday season.
To help SNA remain in compliance and maintain its commitment to abate noise from its aircraft operations, airlines have been required to reduce [seating] capacity on flights through Dec. 31, 2023. We implemented reductions, which were completed last weekend. Impacted passengers flying to and from John Wayne Airport-Orange County were automatically re-accommodated onto alternate flights where available or were refunded if requested. We worked closely with our impacted guests to ensure they could make it safely to their loved ones this holiday season and apologize for any inconvenience they may have experienced. Our schedule will return to normal on January 1, 2024.
Bottom line: What about 2024?
Good question. Demand for flying has increased nationwide, and SNA is a community airport that has speedy security and less risk of crowding than its neighbor Los Angeles International (LAX). Hence the increase in traffic, even after some November 2022 Southwest Airlines cuts. There was a proposal to convert a Marine Corps Air Station into a civilian airport to resolve the capacity problem, but the capacity limit wasn’t at risk at the time.
The proposal caused local controversy.
John Wayne Airport Director Charlene Reynolds explained that the noticeable voluntary compliance of some airlines – such as Alaska and Delta Air Lines – was insufficient for the fall versus the risk of going 50,000 to 75,000 passengers over the cap that could put the future of SNA before the courts. As the airport’s spokesperson Sevrin also shared with Simple Flying, SNA is “actively managing the situation” by evaluating data as reported and “adapting” the airport’s strategy.
The question is what will SNA and US airline leaders do to better manage capacity limits at SNA to have a sustainable amount of capacity within legally binding limits? Or will SNA have its capacity cap go the way of the Netherlands’ Schiphol Airport capacity cap which got scrapped?
