Airport Authority Member Draws $184,997 for 72 Trips

A councilman in Ontario, California, collected nearly $185,000 in travel reimbursements from the local airport authority over a five-year period.

Records obtained under the California Public Records Act show that Alan Wapner, who recently left the airport board, was paid $184,997 for 72 trips between March 2021 and June 2026. Wapner served on the board until recently and also held seats on four other regional agencies. Across all five organizations, his travel totaled 132 trips and cost $283,630. The airport authority account for the largest share of that spending.

The amount Wapner received from the airport authority was 64 times larger than the combined travel reimbursements of the other four board members during the same timeframe. Ron Loveridge, the board president, received $2,865 for his travel between 2021 and 2026. The other three members did not request any reimbursement for travel during that period. Wapner’s trips took him to international destinations including Hong Kong, Rio de Janeiro, the Bahamas, Istanbul, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and Madrid, as well as repeated visits to Hawaii.

Specific expenses included a 17-day conference trip to Maui in January 2023, which cost $8,939.40 and involved renting a three-bedroom house in Lahaina for $7,000. In April 2026, a trip to Rio de Janeiro cost $14,325 and was accompanied by Wapner’s wife. A September 2025 trip to Hong Kong cost $12,701, with airfare alone accounting for $7,437. Wapner defended the costs in an email, stating that the travel was necessary for him to be effective in his position and that none of the trips were junkets. He argued that the trips gave him access to airline executives, concession operators, and federal officials whose decisions affect the airport's growth.

Board President Ron Loveridge said the spending complied with the authority's rules at the time, but commissioners were unaware of the trips. Wapner did not report back to the full board, so other members did not know the frequency or cumulative cost of the travel. Loveridge also noted that the funds came from airport revenue rather than tax dollars. Wapner earned about $250,000 in meeting stipends from the authority over the past decade, which is almost double the amount paid to Supervisor Curt Hagman. The FBI searched Wapner's Ontario home on July 28, along with the homes or offices of Hagman, attorney Frank Lizarraga, and others tied to businessman James Su. Subpoenas were sent to Ontario International Airport and Ontario City Hall, but no charges have been filed as of October 22. The City Council removed Wapner from all committee appointments, including the airport board. He has dropped his planned mayoral run and is seeking another term on the council, where he has served since 1994.

The airport board responded with new financial controls. On September 24, the board approved bylaw changes that cap monthly stipends at $1,000. Members are now limited to one domestic conference per year and one international conference every other year, each requiring advance approval. Spouses' travel can no longer be paid for by the authority. On October 19, the board voted to create an internal auditing program that includes a full-time auditor. Wapner said the board was scapegoating him and that travel was a budget line item that members could have questioned previously. His travel costs for other boards included $62,855 from the City of Ontario, $17,578 from Omnitrans, $12,574 from the Southern California Association of Governments, and $5,625 from the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority. Catherine Lhamon of UC Berkeley's Edley Center on Law and Democracy stated that personal profit from public service is the definition of corruption and called for clear rules and public scrutiny of officials.