Expanded Airport Adds New Flights : Travel: John Wayne begins a gradual increase of flights leading up to the busy holiday season. A 10th airline opens operations this week.

Travelers today will begin seeing additional fruits of the $310-million John Wayne Airport expansion as air carriers begin adding extra flights to their daily rosters.

As many as 10 new daily flights will be added this week, with more to come in mid-October and early November as airlines gear up for the busy holiday travel season, airport operations chief Christine A. Edwards said Sunday.

“There is not going to be a dramatic overnight difference in quantity,” Edwards said. Under the 15-year airport access plan taking effect today, the pre-Oct. 1 average of 90 flights a day eventually could climb to as many as 160 a day.

“It will mean the consumers have more choices; there’ll be more flights at varying times of the day to choose from,” she said.

In the short term, though, airport officials hope that the flight increases won’t send residents running for earplugs--or their telephone.

“Because these new flights are the quieter jets, they shouldn’t be as noticeable to residents,” Edwards said.

Travelers won’t have any new destinations to choose from this week, but they will find a 10th airline serving John Wayne Airport.

Midway Airlines introduces its twice-daily Orange County-to-Chicago service with a cut-rate promotional $99 one-way fare.

But don’t expect such price breaks to catch on at John Wayne, where fares are among the highest in the nation. There is so much unmet passenger demand for flights--especially among business travelers who do not use discount fares--that airlines won’t have to engage in price wars to fill their jets, airport officials said.

In fact, some air fare hikes will hit today.

An Alaska Airlines official said round-trip fares will rise $13 to Seattle and Portland from Orange County. A TWA spokesman said their fares are increasing systemwide. For example, a round-trip TWA flight from Orange County to St. Louis today will cost $399, up from $383 last week.

No explanation was given for the increases, but airlines have been struggling to cope with soaring jet fuel prices triggered by the Persian Gulf crisis and flagging passenger demand during the traditionally slow end-of-summer season.

The increase in flights from John Wayne Airport are allowed under terms of a 1985 settlement of a noise damage suit against the county. Under the agreement, airlines must use newer, quieter jets for the added flights. Edwards emphasized that the noisiest aircraft are still limited to 39 flights per day.

The settlement also limits the number of passengers allowed to use the new terminal to 8.4 million people a year through the year 2005. That provision is expected to limit flights to an average of 140 to 160 a day, depending on aircraft capacity.

Neither passengers nor residents living in the flight path can expect to see those numbers for at least several years, airport officials have said.

All the airlines serving John Wayne were awarded additional flights except America West, which lost a flight, said airport spokeswoman Courtney Weircioch.

Today, Delta Air Lines is adding three daily flights to its current roster of four: two to Dallas/Ft. Worth and one to Salt Lake City, an airline official said.

Officials for Alaska, American and USAir said Sunday that no increase in flights is planned in the immediate future. Representatives for Continental, Northwest Orient, and United were unavailable for comment Sunday.

So far, no cross-continental flights are scheduled. But both American and Northwest Orient have indicated a desire to try to meet John Wayne Airport’s tough noise standards with new Boeing 767 wide-body jets--which have more fuel capacity--in the near future.

Hawaii has been mentioned as a potential destination for such jets. But should those aircraft meet noise standards, airport officials have said nonstop service more likely would be added first to Washington and possibly New York City.

Times staff writers Kevin Johnson and Lynn Smith contributed to this article.