Ontario Airport - parking and history (Empire: cost, car, cell phone)

[robertpasa]

I need to pick someone up here.
Can I wait in my car right on the curb outside the terminals, like at LAX? I know there is a cellphone lot.
I'm trying to avoid paying for parking. I am hoping to wait as close to the terminals as possible without paying.

Why are the terminals called Terminal2 and Terminal4? What happened to 1 and 3?

[pathrunner]

I used to fly out of ONT a lot back in the day.

It depends upon how long you are wanting to wait. If they are strictly enforcing the waiting, you won't be able to wait for long. But you should be able to wait for a minute and tell whoever is enforcing the curb that you've received a call that your party has picked up their luggage and is on their way out the door. That's what I've done. It's always worked.

You should wait at the far end of the airport (cell phone lot) and wait for a call from your party. It's not a large airport at all. Depending upon the time of day, it shouldn't be a problem. Going from the cell phone lot shouldn't take more than 2-3 minutes depending upon the number of people driving there. Again, it shouldn't be a problem.

The number of terminals doesn't matter. Look up your party's flight and learn what terminal they are arriving at. Usually airlines are assigned fixed terminals. This link shows which terminal the airlines are located.

https://www.flyontario.com/flights/airlines

[LivingLikeAGradStudent]

The airport moved, in essence, about 25 years ago, the terminals, runways and parking. So the numbering seems off. It was a much more prominent facility, more standalone, before LAX bought it. It took a real dive in traffic -- fares not competitive, tough econ in the Inland Empire, LAX hovered over routes and carriers -- and is nowhere near the airport it could be.

[pathrunner]

Thanks for the reminder. It used to be cost effective to fly out of ONT, but no longer. Not for quite a while.

[Axxlrod]

Track the flight online. Arrive at the cell phone lot 20 minutes after plane lands. Have person call you when they get their bags. Two minute drive from cell phone lot to pickup curb. What's so hard?

[sacreole]

Do you know the airline that your party is flying in on? Terminal 2 contains Alaska, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, United, Avianca, China Airlines and Volaris. Terminal 4 contains American, Hawaiian, and Southwest.

The cell phone lot is located next to the terminal curbside according to the airport website.

https://www.flyontario.com/parking/lots

[robertpasa]

On Google Maps, Terminals 2 and 4 are not labeled.
You'd think they would be.

There's a way to make suggestions but I don't know if they would pay attention.

[sacreole]

Originally Posted by robertpasa

On Google Maps, Terminals 2 and 4 are not labeled.
You'd think they would be.

There's a way to make suggestions but I don't know if they would pay attention.

Regardless of whether the terminals are labeled in logical sequence or are featured on Google Maps, when you arrive at Ontario Airport, you’ll see the signage for Terminal 2 and Terminal 4. Just so you know, prior to 1982-83, LAX didn’t even have a “Terminal 1.” The first terminal that one encountered was Terminal 2, which was the international terminal at the time.

[pathrunner]

Originally Posted by Axxlrod

Track the flight online. Arrive at the cell phone lot 20 minutes after plane lands. Have person call you when they get their bags. Two minute drive from cell phone lot to pickup curb. What's so hard?

THIS. Ontario Airport is very small. It is easy to navigate. Follow the above and you can't go wrong.

[pathrunner]

flightaware.com

Track the flight with the flight number. There is an app. You can also do it on a desktop or laptop computer.