John Wayne Airport slips from top spot to No. 10 in customer satisfaction

Traveler Duane Ferkovich was waiting for his Uber ride late Monday morning after arriving at John Wayne Airport from Salt Lake City, on his way to a business meeting in Irvine.

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“It takes them forever,” bemoaned Ferkovich, who flies into the airport routinely. He pointed to a long line of rideshare drivers on the upper deck of the airport’s parking lots. “It’s sometimes congested, with construction happening here, or a restroom is closed. I’ll have to walk to another concourse.”

Courtney Bush and Victoria Driscoll work in marketing and flew into the Santa Ana airport from John F. Kennedy International Airport. They too complained about rideshare drivers canceling on them three times outside the airport.

“I’m currently in an annoying state of mind as I’m hungry and want to check in with our hotel,” said a frustrated Bush who was on her first visit to Orange County.

Traffic along Airport Way leading into John Wayne was equally snarled, bumper to bumper for hours on Monday morning with valet parking in front of the terminals taking up space and rideshare drivers darting in and out of lanes.

JWA, honored in years past as one of the best large airports in North America, fell 10 spots in customer satisfaction from its previous No. 1 ranking a year ago, according to an annual survey by JD Power of North America. Large airports handle 10 million to 32.9 million passengers annually.

In all, 24 airports in North America were ranked. The slip for John Wayne was the biggest drop among those in California.

JWA spokeswoman AnnaSophia Servin explained in a written statement to the Southern California News Group that the study covered July 2025 through July this year, as “multiple redevelopment construction projects were beginning to be implemented.”

JD Power says its 2026 study was based on 24,710 completed surveys from U.S. or Canadian residents who traveled through at least one U.S. or Canadian airport and covers departure and arrival experiences during the past 30 days. Passengers evaluated either a departing or arriving airport from their round-trip experience.

JWA is in the middle of a $700 million capital improvement plan, which is likely fueling some traveler angst.

In recent years, the airport reconstructed and realigned taxiway A and rebuilt connector taxiways D and E to improve aircraft movement, safety and reduce delays.

Underneath the road surfaces around the airport, electrical lines were installed to connect a central power plant to generate electricity and serve as a backup during outages. It also has modernized restrooms, a new baggage handling system and improved escalators.

In a video published on YouTube four months ago, Charlene Reynolds, JWA’s director, said are an “important investment in the future of the airport. “We appreciate your patience during construction and look forward to continuing to improve your airport experience,” she says on the video.

Servin said JWA is continuing to add improvements to its terminals, concessions, accessibility, signage, parking and other passenger amenities. “We recognize that passenger expectations continue to evolve, and we will continue listening to our guests and looking for opportunities to improve their experience,” she said.

This week, there were also travelers who appreciated the airport for all the problems it doesn’t have.

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“I avoid LAX because of the traffic,” said Shane Eliason, who had arrived Monday at John Wayne from Salt Lake City. “It’s easy peasy here.”

Arriving from Phoenix, Mike Evans stood in a line with 20 other travelers waiting for an Uber ride.

“It’s quick and easy to do,” said Evans, who also makes business trips to Orlando International Airport where it’s more difficult to get a ride with hundreds of rideshare drivers waiting in long lines. “You’re standing in line waiting for some guy to show up, and 10,000 people are looking for their driver. It’s crazy.”

Other airports in California didn’t experience the same kind of customer dissatisfaction found in the survey.

Sacramento International Airport came in at 11th on the list — the same as last year — San Jose International at 16th (down two spots), San Diego International Airport at 16th (down one spot), and Oakland International Airport at 20th — moved up a spot in the rankings.

For medium-sized airports, defined as those with 4.5 million to 9.9 million passengers annually, — as it did last year — and Hollywood Burbank Airport came in fifth, rising four spots from 2025.

“We are pleased to have made the top five, especially since we’re not known for having all the bells and whistles, but for being Southern California’s most convenient airport option,” a Hollywood Burbank Airport spokesman said. “We look forward to next year’s survey, once passengers have experienced our new terminal facility — set to open in October 2026.”

Atif Elkadi, chief executive officer of the Ontario International Airport Authority, said the customer survey shows that passengers value their experience at the inland airport.

“Being ranked No. 2 among North America’s medium-sized airports for the second consecutive year is a tremendous achievement, but what I’m most proud of is what sits behind that ranking.”

The airport has completed more than $140 in capital improvement projects, which includes runway renovations, a repaved Airport Drive along the front of the airport from Haven Avenue to the Cucamonga Channel, replaced signage, and a new exit lane for the Transportation Security Administration. An additional $76 million is planned on other projects, according to an Ontario airport spokesman.

On Monday, Fred Saca was picking up his sister-in-law traveling from Israel in front of the Southwest terminal at ONT when his $60,000 BMW 530i got a flat tire in the tow-away zone.

Traffic guards helped calm a frantic Saca while a tow truck came to move his car away. “The airport is amazing,” said Saca.

“Safety is always first,” responded airport traffic cop Timothy Wilson.

Los Angeles International Airport ranked 14th among mega-sized airports, defined as those with 33 million or more passengers per year. That’s an improvement of one spot over last year. The airport is undergoing a years-long, massive transformation, part of a $30 billion capital improvement program encompassing numerous modernization, terminal and roadway projects.

The JD Power study measures passenger satisfaction, including ease of travel, terminal facilities, airport staff and the food, beverage and retail experience.

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