America West to Reshuffle Flights

America West Airlines plans to reconfigure its service out of Orange County’s John Wayne Airport, reducing service to Sacramento while adding a corresponding number of flights to Seattle and Phoenix, company officials said Monday.

The discount carrier will trim three of its eight daily flights to Sacramento and shift that service to other routes this fall, according to America West spokesman Gus Whitcomb. He said the carrier will add another flight to Phoenix on Sept. 5 and begin twice-daily nonstop service to Seattle beginning Oct. 1.

America West currently is the only carrier providing nonstop service to Sacramento from John Wayne Airport. Whitcomb said customer demand and the carrier’s desire for greater profitability motivated the change.

“Our numbers tell us that shifting service from Sacramento to Seattle and Phoenix would result in higher profitability,” Whitcomb said.

The company will still boast 25 daily departures from Orange County following the reshuffling. America West currently offers 10 daily flights to Phoenix and seven to Las Vegas in addition to its service to Sacramento.