New impacts of coronavirus on Orange County’s airport have begun to emerge, with John Wayne Airport reporting a 63% drop in passengers last month to 338,000.
Flights to and from the airport fell 35% in March to 17,000 with general aviation, which makes up 64% of total operations, dropping 39% to about 11,000.
Commercial flights in February were down 28% to about 5,600. Commuter flights—scheduled flights on planes with fewer than 70 seats—was the only sector to see an increase, rising 25% to 500 flights.
International passengers totaling 2,800 on 40 flights were declines of 83% and 77%, respectively year-over-year.
The three busiest airlines in March by passenger count were Southwest at 111,350; American at 61,800; and United with 53,100 passengers.
Year-to-date traffic is down 25% to 1.9 million; flights are down 16% for the first three months to 59,100.
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