An airport security guard suffering from an apparent medical emergency has been hospitalized after driving a car at high speed down an active taxiway at John Wayne Airport-Orange County Airport (SNA). The chaotic incident was captured on video by onlookers, who filmed the driver speeding across the taxiway in a white sedan.
After being detained by law enforcement, the individual was taken to a local hospital and subsequently suspended from his job pending further investigation. Airport operations were not significantly impacted by the incident, which fortunately did not lead to any injuries or damage.
High-Speed Car Zooms Down John Wayne Airport Taxiway
As first reported by ABC7, the incident unfolded at John Wayne Airport on Monday afternoon. At around 1:15 PM, a white Toyota Camry drove down the active taxiway at dangerously high speeds, apparently making it down the length of the taxiway. Reports state that a contract airport security guard assigned to an airfield security checkpoint was behind the wheel of the car. As seen below, video footage of the incident shows the vehicle zooming past several commercial jets while shocked ground workers looked on.
Air traffic control (ATC) was aware of the unfolding disruption, advising a Southwest Airlines aircraft to hold position as “there’s a high-speed chase on the taxiway.” Police officers from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department were quickly on the scene and arrested the individual. As per ATC recordings during the incident, it was an American Airlines pilot who first warned the tower of the vehicle’s presence on the taxiway. The man is said to have exited the car and tried to barricade himself in, but was ultimately detained without incident.
A spokesperson from John Wayne Airport told KTLA,
“Due to the subject’s erratic behavior, deputies requested a medical assessment by the Orange County Fire Authority. The individual was evaluated on scene and determined to be experiencing a possible medical emergency.”
Driver Suffering A Medical Emergency
After being detained, police officers called for a medical evaluation due to the driver’s “erratic behavior.” The individual was assessed by medical teams and determined to be experiencing some kind of medical emergency, likely mental health-related.
Rijken Vanderweide, an airport employee who recorded the footage, said the car came dangerously close to crashing into an aircraft, stating that “he probably would’ve collided with that nose gear and possibly collapsed that front end of the plane.”
The airport has stated that flight operations were not impacted by the incident, which appears to have been tackled and resolved fairly quickly. John Wayne Airport is the only commercial airport in Orange County, California, and the second-largest facility in the Greater Los Angeles area behind 
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
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A Serious Safety Breach
Access to active aircraft movement areas, like taxiways and runways, is heavily restricted for obvious safety reasons. While cars and other airport vehicles are a key component of airport operations, their movements are closely controlled in coordination with ATC to avoid any safety threats. It isn’t clear if the Toyota Camry involved in the incident was an airport vehicle or a private vehicle owned by the driver or another employee. However, the video footage shows the car lacked any visible airport markings, so it was most likely a private vehicle.
Entering an aircraft movement area without ATC clearance can lead to all kinds of risks, including collisions with aircraft taxiing, landing or taking off. While a taxiway isn’t as dangerous an incursion as an active runway, there is still significant potential for an accident to occur.
John Wayne Airport was the site of a similar incident back in 2021, when an individual hijacked an airport vehicle and went on a joyride around the airport grounds. The man later exited the vehicle and broke into the airport’s terminal, hiding in the ceiling before he was tracked down and arrested by law enforcement.
