trekwars2000

I'm not going to make a huge comment here, but my airport that serves 40 million passengers per year has a lot of parking spots and I'm not waiting for a bus. How can a waiting for a bus after parking be a plus at a 4 million passenger per year airport?

ETA: Oh and BTW, at least tomorrow, Monday 8/12 there is 2x daily mainline Airbus flights from IAH to ONT.

dls25

The whole point of rationalization was to get normal LAX passengers to use ONT as an alternate airport . A very large percentage of the 7.2 million passengers that used ONT in 2005 were passengers that normally used LAX and SNA lured to ONT by cheap airfares.

My cousin in Cerritos was one of them. He lives 20 min away from LGB and 40 minutes away from both LAX and SNA but back in the mid 00's whenever he would come visit the family in NY he would drive the hour to ONT and fly B6 because it was at least $200 cheaper than other options (which also explains why B6 dropped the airport like a bad habit).

groobie

ONT is my closest airport and I love flying out of it. Relatively cheap parking, short lines through security, small terminal so little walking. However, it really does feel like a ghost town these days and I find it increasingly difficult to find good fares or flight times. It makes me sad. It seems like the only money the airport makes anymore must come from the entertainment industry - I laugh every time a tv show claims to be at LAX when the architecture is so obviously ONT.

writerguyfl

I'm not sure there are facts to support your opinions. First, if transferred, the new public agency would take on 100% of ONT's debts. The bonds used to finance all of ONT's facilities are being paid off by user fees and PFCs. None of the current outstanding debt has been backed by LAWA (or LAX). (source 1)

Second, ONT's debt is actually quite small. Airport debt is measured in $ per enplaned passenger. In 2008 (the most recent data I could find), the median debt for US airports was $78 per enplaned passenger. (source 2) For fiscal year 2012, the outstanding debt at ONT was $31.95 per enplaned passenger. During that same year, the debt at LAX was $116.42 per enplaned passenger. (source 3)

Debt isn't the issue. Those wanting local control of ONT are not delusional. But, I willingly admit it's a complicated issue. Feel free to provide an alternative analysis of the facts.

Sources:
1: http://setontariofree.com/faq
2: http://www.scribd.com/embeds/7229352...ri4ci92n15gjv5
3: http://www.lawa.org/uploadedFiles/LAWA/pdf/LAWA_Comprehensive_Annual_Financial_Report_2012.pd f (on page 86)

escapefromphl

There are people in LA who don't work in the entertainment industry? I think ONT's demise is partly due to a growing unwillingness to deal with traffic. I don't even consider BUR from where I live, only a few miles further than LAX. Sports teams in LA face similar issues.

jaguar

Sad news indeed. I too used to fly out of ONT and loved it compared to LAX.

StevenSeagalFan

Alaska still flies 737's into ONT.

Auto Enthusiast

Another way of gauging how much traveler interest exists for ONT and the surrounding region is to look at the license plates in the rental car lot. In most large West Coast (and East Coast) cities, there'll be a random mix. If it's mostly the same state, in this case CA, that implies not much visitor interest from other areas. Has anybody noticed a lot of out of state cars recently at ONT and other regional airports nearby?

ianmanka

I flew ONT on CO in Dec 2009/Jan 2010. The fares were very attractive (about $100-200 less than LAX), so I decided to trek out there to try it out. CO was flying a 738 at the time. The plane was full, with what seemed to be a lot of first-time fliers.

If I recall correctly, the FAs that were on this flight flew in with the inbound aircraft, and had to return to IAH.

As a redeye, it was brutal -- 1:15 departure, 6:00 arrival (4:00 AM Pacific), and I think the plane arrived about 40 minutes early.

Even as attractive airfares try to lure me, it's just too much of a drive to get out there. Probably great for those who live in the IE.

formeraa

Well, I must agree that ONT has seen better days. I always take US or WN to/from PHX. Unbelievable that the other terminal is worse...I thought the WN terminal was pretty dead -- particularly after they closed off the far gates where HP used to depart from.

The food selections are rather meager...$8 burgers at Carl's Jr. or $12 Schlotsky's sandwiches. Oh, yes, and the TGIFridays that is NEVER open when I'm there. Are they only open from 9am to 11am or something?

Bookexp

I live in between LAX/ONT on the LA side. Before UA/CO merged, 25% of my flights are out of ONT on CO.

In the last 3 years, I only flew out of ONT couple times. The reason? ONT is more expensive. After Jetblue cut ONT, the airfares from ONT went up a lot compared to LAX or SNA.

I like the convenience of ONT (short lines and easy parking), but it's hard to justify the fare differences. To save ONT, LAWA or whoever is taking over needs to offer incentives to get airlines fly there again. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area has more than 1.9 million people, more than Cleveland or Cincinnati. ONT deserves a better owner/management team.

Weyland Yutani Corp

Agreed on all points. I'm feeling squeezed to fly from SNA now since the larger aircraft run more on time & cancel less. The amenities (including United Club and restaurants) also help. But to me the lack of flights and quick delays/cancellations are becoming a no-go for me at ONT

HkCaGu

Compare with SNA or others: No Global Entry. No PreCheck. And if it's a CRJ2, no upgrades. Who would fly?

Weyland Yutani Corp

TSApre is hardly needed there, but the upgrades...

Kacee

Huh? I've never waited more than five minutes to clear security at ONT. And Global Entry? Into SNA? From where on UA?