Earlier this week the Orange County (California) Board of Supervisors allowed Southwest Airlines to add about 15 more flights out of John Wayne Airport (SNA) in 2015 which will raise the daily number of Southwest flights at the airport from 52 to 67 by the end of next year. No other airlines asked for additional flights for 2015.

SNA is a favorite for locals of Irvine, Newport Beach and Costa Mesa because it reduces the hassle of going to neighboring LAX -  it’s also just 14 miles from Orange County’s main attraction – Disneyland.

Southwest Airlines current service from SNA includes daily non-stop flights to: Dallas-Love and Mexico City, Mexico (both begins November 2, 2014), Denver, Houston-Hobby, Las Vegas, Oakland, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), and San José del Cabo. Southwest already has more flights out of John Wayne Airport than any other airline.

There is no word if this increase in service means service to new markets, or if it will increase service in existing markets.

Bottom Line:
While specific destinations haven’t been announced – Southwest Airlines operates out of Terminal C at SNA where under an expansion in 2011, 7 gates were added and a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Federal Inspection Service for international flights that do not have pre-clearance was also added. Terminal C also has Global Entry to speed up processing times for international arrivals. Could Southwest be looking at Orange County for increased international service?