The Bay Area's Airports Are Fighting

Traveling to and from California's Bay Area may soon get more confusing after officials in Oakland approved renaming its international airport to include the name of its neighboring city.

Commissioners of the Port of Oakland voted unanimously on Thursday to approve changing the name of the Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK) to the San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport, despite protests from officials across that bay— which is home to San Francisco International Airport (SFO)—who say the renaming will only serve to puzzle the flying public.

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San Francisco officials now have "no choice but to take legal action" in hopes of stopping the name change from being implemented, according to a spokesperson for the city's attorney, David Chiu.

"We are disappointed that Oakland did not take the opportunity to work collaboratively with us to develop alternative names," Chiu's office told Newsweek.

In a social media post ahead of the vote, Chiu said the proposal to rename Oakland International Airport "would cause immense confusion for travelers and infringes on SFO's trademark."

Earlier in the week, Chiu sent a letter to the Port arguing that point, noting SFO's "long history" using the city's name, as well as SFO's "high recognition in the marketplace," including as a major entry point to the U.S.

The name change could confuse fliers who could misunderstand OAK's physical location, thinking it's in San Francisco rather than Oakland, or believe that the two airports share some sort of connection, Chiu wrote.

But neither that letter nor the threat of legal action appeared to dissuade Oakland officials.

In announcing the unanimous approval of the name change, Port Commission President Barbara Leslie said in a press release: "We are standing up for Oakland and the East Bay; this will boost inbound travelers' geographic awareness of the airport by highlighting the airport's location on the San Francisco Bay."

Speaking to Newsweek, a spokesperson for the Port of Oakland went further, arguing that the airport's new name is intended to boost economic activity in the struggling city by making it clear to travelers not familiar with the area that the airport is convenient for accessing not just Oakland, but San Francisco and the wider Bay Area as well.

"The proposed name modification "San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport" is both pro-Oakland and pro-jobs. Our goal is to boost local jobs and economic activity for Oakland and the region," the spokesperson said.

Oakland is currently struggling with a confluence of intertwined economic and social issues, from deteriorating public safety and the proliferation of open-air drug markets to a slow post-pandemic recovery of its downtown. San Francisco, for its part, is dealing with many of the same problems, though its population and tax base is significantly wealthier.

William Rankin, a legal consultant for airports who often testifies as an expert witness, told Newsweek he failed to see where the confusion over the two airports would lead—and that even if some bewildered fliers accidentally booked a trip to OAK thinking they were flying into SFO, the hubs are a mere 30-minute drive away.

Bickering between a region's airports is not new, Rankin said. He noted a similar controversy several years ago in central Florida, when a small airport in Melbourne, about an hour outside of Orlando, changed its name from Melbourne International to Orlando Melbourne International Airport—not to be confused with Orlando International Airport (or Orlando Sanford International Airport).

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After a lengthy court battle, a resolution was reached that included simply swapping the words in the Melbourne airport's name: Melbourne Orlando International Airport now greets arrivals to the Space Coast city.

Back in northern California, barring the expected legal challenge from its neighbor, the Oakland airport's name change will be given final approval at a meeting next month. At that point, signage and other modifications can go forward. The Port said that the airport's code, OAK, will not change.