Like a pilot’s eyes fixed on the altimeter during takeoff, the management of Ontario International Airport is watching the passenger and freight counts, especially after marking the third anniversary of taking possession of the airport from the city of Los Angeles.

About 10 days into Year 4 of local control, the needle keeps moving.

The airport increased from 4 million annual passengers on Nov. 1, 2016, the takeover date, to 4.4 million on Nov. 1, 2019. In 2016, the airport ended the year with 4.2 million passengers and this year officials expect it to reach 5.5 million passengers by Dec. 31, said Atif Elkadi, ONT’s deputy chief executive officer, in a Nov. 4 interview. The next goal would be a return to the record high of 7 million passengers in 2007, before the airport started losing flights and customers in the following decade while under the control of the Los Angeles World Airports.

“There is absolutely no reason why we can’t reach 7 million or higher,” Elkadi said. “With 24 million people that live here (in Southern California), there’s no reason we can’t hit that number in the next three to five years.”

Regional planning groups foresee ONT flying 35 million passengers a year by 2045. Freight tonnage has grown, surpassing Atlanta’s airport.

Elkadi and others admit they must find solutions to growing pains, including getting people to and from the airport. Right now, the only way is by car via the jammed 10, 60 and 15 freeways. Other issues include: old hangars left to rot from World War II blocking growth, and concerns from residents in Chino and south Ontario regarding increasing airplane noise.

“But that (growth) will only occur if we are able to bring in transit, rail, other ways to get here other than with your car,” said Alan Wapner, Ontario councilman and president of the Ontario International Airport Authority, a joint governing authority made up of the city of Ontario and the county of San Bernardino and the board that governs the airport.

Wapner said he supports the plan to extend the Gold Line light-rail system into the airport but says the obstacles are huge. It will cost $2.5 billion and none of that money is available. Also, getting it to Montclair — a path that seemed certain for 10 years — is now in question due to rising construction prices and alternatives being floated by the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority that do not prioritize light-rail. Without a station in San Bernardino County, the Gold Line won’t ever reach ONT, emphasizes Montclair City Councilman Bil Ruh.

With Los Angeles Airport (LAX) rated the worst airport in the world due to traffic jams, parking woes and long security lines, Elkadi boasts that ONT passengers can park, go through security checkpoints and reach their gate in about 30 minutes. Also, LAX has no transit connection, something that is under construction but will take at least four more years to complete.

“I hope we don’t make the same mistake here as they did at LAX,” said Rep. Norma Torres, D-Pomona, in an interview Thursday, Nov. 7. “That is not a goal I want to see for the Ontario folks. I hope we can come up with a 20-year plan to bring light-rail to the airport and the Gold Line is key to all of that.”

Strong passenger numbers

Since establishing local control, passenger and cargo numbers are up at ONT.

Between June 2018 and June 2019, the number of passengers grew by 9.6%, reported the Center For Economic Forecasting & Development from the UC Riverside School of Business. In comparison, passenger traffic at LAX increased by 0.3% and contracted by 3.4% at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, the center reported in a 2019 study.

In 2019, Delta Airlines increased its flights from ONT to Atlanta to twice a day; United Airlines added a flight to Houston; Southwest Airlines added four flights to San Francisco and a Denver flight, Elkadi said.

In 2018, China Airlines began flying one flight a day from ONT to Taipei, Taiwan. Just two weeks ago, the airline began using a Boeing 777 300ER, which holds 358 passengers, almost 100 passengers more than the A350 plane it used to use, Elkadi said. The airline is running 86% load capacity, a very good percentage considering 81% is above average, he said.

Wapner said an increase of Asian Americans in Eastvale and Ontario Ranch, as well as pulling from Asian-majority cities in the San Gabriel Valley, has fueled that growth. Many use the flight to connect to mainland China, Vietnam and the Philippines, he said.

“Other foreign international carriers are extremely interested in coming to Ontario,” Wapner said.

Local control helped the China flight happen, he said. A customs inspection building is now staffed by 12 full-time customs and Border Patrol agents who are based at ONT. Before, LAWA trucked in these employees on a temporary basis, Wapner explained.

The Ontario airport authority began to find new sources of revenue such as leasing land to cargo-moving companies such as FedEx and Amazon. This has helped ONT reduce airline landing fees, which in turn has dropped ticket prices, said Elkadi.

During the LAWA administration, 800 acres of airport land was left fallow, leaving revenue on the table, Wapner said.

“We’ve been able to reduce airline costs quite a bit,” Elkadi said. “That would free them up to add flights and it makes us a more attractive option than other airports.”

The airport is trying to lure an airline with flights to Hawaii, Elkadi said. “That is on our hit list,” he said.

Cargo is king

From 2018 to 2019, total freight tonnage increased by 14.8% to 751,500 tons, the UCR study found. Since 2009, the amount of freight cargo transported to and from ONT has increased by 92.2%, according to the UCR study.

The airport is No. 1 in the nation for outgoing freight tonnage, according to FreightWaves magazine.

“Cargo is the silent revenue driver,” Elkadi said, albeit it’s the “less sexy” component of ONT’s operations.

FedEx has invested $100 million to expand its hub. Amazon has gone from two flights a day in 2017 to 14 flights, Elkadi said.

Having airport operations at an airfield near the 60, 15 and 10 freeways is attractive to e-commerce companies because it cuts down on delivery time, Elkadi said. “It’s a way for them to get their package to their customers in a seamless fashion.”

Air and noise pollution

Environmental groups criticize the logistics businesses because they increase trucks traveling to warehouses — a problem accelerated by ONT’s cargo business. The trucks are a major source of diesel particulate pollution in the region, a lung irritant that can cause disease and premature death, according to health studies. Elkadi said the airport is working with the South Coast Air Quality Management District to find ways to reduce emissions.

Torres said she’s concerned about air pollution in the region. One way to reduce that is to get people out of their cars by building more mass transit, something lacking in the Inland Empire.

Residents of Chino and south Ontario say more flights mean more airport noise. Some complain about the majority of flights taking off to the west, then turning above their homes at low altitudes of 2,300 feet to head east.

“The big concern is the nighttime flights,” said Jesse Fonseca, an Ontario resident. He said even with the doors and windows shut at home, “you can hear them coming.” The noise keeps him up at night and can trigger his migraine headaches, he said during in an interview on Sept. 30.

Residents have complained to the airport authority. Chino residents appealed to their City Council, as well, prompting a July 30, 2019, letter to Wapner.

“We understand that the airport’s growth benefits the region, its businesses, and residents,” Chino Mayor Eunice M. Ulloa wrote, “but we are concerned that some Chino residents are disproportionately bearing the burden which will also have impacts to the future Ontario Ranch Development.”

Elkadi said the Federal Aviation Administration determines all airplane routes and the airport authority works to make sure the rules are followed.

“Yes, there are some growing pains, but look at the economic impact this airport brings to this region,” Elkadi said.

Business spillover effect

With locals running the airport, they can involve more local businesses.

For example, Wapner said, the OIAA has a rule that any Hollywood production crew filming at ONT must hire local caterers.

The pride in ownership has reached businesses who want to relocate to the IE and connect with ONT, Wapner said. Fletcher Jones located a Mercedes-Benz car dealership in Ontario and allows customers to leave their cars for servicing while on a trip. They even provide rides to the airport.

“The reason we needed local control is we saw the largest economic generator in the region going down,” Wapner said, reminiscing. “The flights were cut so much it caused the convention business to go down and caused the hotel business to go down.”

For the past three years, the airport has increased passengers and cargo. But just as important is the airport growth’s spillover into the local economy.

“Ontario airport is the engine that drives the Inland Empire economy — as a major international trade hub and employment center for a wide variety of industries,” Jim Bowman, an Ontario councilman and airport authority board member, said in a prepared statement.

Wapner said looking back three years, he sees no negatives in the transition of control from L.A. to the Ontario-San Bernardino County JPA.

“Three years ago, we assured the stability of that economic resource, where before it was in the hands of somebody else and we had no control,” Wapner said. “The airport is another jewel in our crown.”