Traffic Declines Again at Van Nuys Airport
Traffic at Van Nuys Airport continued to decline in 1986, but the drop was not as great as in 1985.
The airport counted 477,689 flight operations--takeoffs and landings--in 1986, an airport spokesman reported. That represented a drop of about 3% from the 1985 total of 492,382, which was a decline of about 14.5% from the 1984 total of 575,721. The 1986 figure is the lowest since 439,563 operations were logged in 1965.
Operations hit an all-time high of 618,694 in 1976 and fell in most years since.
The decline was blamed on a slump in general aviation, which includes private, business and charter flights. Industry sources blame rising fuel prices in the 1970s, the recession of the early 1980s and a steep rise in liability insurance rates.
Van Nuys Airport for many years had the third-highest number of flight operations in the United States. Airport officials say statistics are not available yet for 1986, but they believe the airport dropped to about sixth busiest.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
