SNA: John Wayne Airport – Santa Ana, CA

10-15 Minutes from San Bernardino – 1 Airline – 2 Destinations Served

It’s the little airport that not many people have heard about until recently. New Haven’s Tweed airport has seen various air carriers throughout its years of operation, but most recently, it has come to life because of one specific carrier, Avelo Airlines.

Flight options had dwindled over the years, and the pandemic accelerated the decline with American Airlines being the only carrier in 2020. In October 2020, American announced they would leave New Haven entirely, thus ending commercial air service in New Haven.

Fast forward to May 2021 when the new carrier itself, Avelo Airlines, announced that the airline will launch its second base at Tweed in fall 2021. It was Avelo’s first venture into operations along the Atlantic coast and the carrier started out with four routes to destinations in Florida. Success was felt immediately as Avelo continued to add more destinations from Tweed, with 14 destinations being served today.

EXPERIENCE:

The simplicity of Tweed is both a strong point and a negative point for the airport. Being small means that it is extremely easy to navigate. In fact, when you first arrive at the airport, you can see the entire airport. Getting through security, both standard and Pre-Check, doesn’t take that long. There’s only one entry point into the gate area, so you can’t miss it. However, the gate area isn’t that expansive since it is a small airport, which is fine until there are multiple flights at one time.

My experience included four flights all departing within a short period of time and for being a small airport, it was somewhat chaotic actually. Two flights were on time and two were delayed (one being mine).

The amenities at Tweed are somewhat limited as one might expect being a smaller airport. G Café Bakery, a local New Haven company, offers a variety of small bites, snacks, and beverage options. Seating is ample enough, and in a pinch, the airport will open up the upper deck of the terminal to expand seating options.

Overall, Tweed serves the needs of Avelo decently and Avelo, in turn, offers a handful of options and flights giving travelers more choices. Outside of New Haven, travelers can drive to Hartford or head down to New York City.

AIRPORT DETAILS:

Main Carriers: Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Alaska Airlines
Location: 18601 Airport Way, Santa Ana, CA 92707
Airport Details: John Wayne Airport
Public Transport Details: Omnitrans Route 15