American Eagle Will End Service to LAX
Citing weak demand for air travel between Orange County and Los Angeles, American Airlines officials said Monday that the carrier will discontinue American Eagle commuter service to John Wayne Airport after Sept. 30.
The company’s commuter affiliate currently operates four flights a day out of John Wayne, feeding passengers to American’s hub at Los Angeles International Airport. Some passengers prefer flying out of John Wayne to avoid the traffic and parking charges at LAX--but too few to make it worthwhile for American to continue the service, spokesman Tim Kincaid said.
“It’s unprofitable for us,” Kincaid said. “We didn’t sell a lot of seats on those flights.”
Orange County passengers will still be able to fly to LAX on Sky West, an affiliate of Delta Airlines, and on WestAir Commuter Airlines Inc., which does business under the name United Express as part of a marketing agreement with United Airlines.
“The impact isn’t going to be that great,” John Wayne Airport spokeswoman Kathleen Campini Chambers said. “There are other carriers to pick up the demand.”
Kincaid said no American Eagle employees at John Wayne Airport will lose their jobs because of the carrier’s departure. Instead, about 15 ground service workers will be offered transfers to other American facilities, he said.
Kincaid said American Eagle has pulled out of 26 cities over the last year in a move to pare unprofitable routes.
As recently as last year, the carrier offered seven daily flights from John Wayne to LAX using 19-seat aircraft. But a systemwide switch to larger, 34-seat planes made it tougher for American Eagle to fill the aircraft and turn a profit, Kincaid said, particularly when so many Orange County passengers choose to drive to LAX.
In July, American Eagle reported record traffic while carrying more than 1.1 million passengers, up 2.4% from July 1996.
American Airlines remains among John Wayne’s top carriers, with 15 flights daily out of Orange County to Chicago and Dallas-Ft. Worth.
