Despite Orange Alert, John Wayne Travelers Are Finding Few Delays

While travelers at Los Angeles International Airport struggled with long lines and canceled flights, conditions were nearly normal Christmas Eve at John Wayne Airport, despite stepped-up security.

Entrances off of Michelson Drive and the San Diego Freeway were closed after the Transportation Security Administration raised the national terrorist threat level to orange Sunday. Traffic was diverted to Campus Drive, where officers spot-checked cars. Travelers were checked again in the parking structure.

“I knew I had to get the car searched, but it was no big deal,” said Steve Tiffany, 35, of Irvine, who was catching a flight to St. Louis to visit his family.

“That’s the way things are nowadays.”

Jim Purcey, 53, of Huntington Beach prepared for the worst to travel to Kansas to surprise his grandchildren.

He called United Airlines to reconfirm his flight, arrived three hours early and had a friend drop him off curbside.

But Purcey, along with many other travelers, was pleasantly surprised when the lines and security checks moved quickly.

“I didn’t think it would be this easy after all the stuff on the news and the orange alert,” said Purcey. “It hasn’t been bad at all.”

As he waited for more than two hours before boarding, Purcey noticed that people were saying long goodbyes, giving hugs and leisurely walking to the lines. They were not fighting for carts or cutting each other off for a spot on the curbside drop-off.

“When no one is honking, you know traffic is running smoothly,” he said.

Airport spokesman Justin McCusker said travelers should still plan to arrive early. “People really need to allow themselves enough time to get through the airport,” McCusker said. “We can’t stress it enough.”

He said John Wayne Airport is experiencing fewer problems than LAX because it is smaller and has no international flights.

There have been no security-related flight cancellations, he said.

Airport officials recommend that travelers arrive 2 1/2 hours early for parking, check-in and the security screening process. Travelers can enter the airport from the Costa Mesa Freeway offramp or Campus Drive and are encouraged to park in parking garages A1, B1, A2 or B2, which are accessible from the departure level only. Off-site parking is available in the Main Street lot.