Officials at Metropolitan Oakland International Want to Change the Airport’s Name

In hopes of raising awareness among international and domestic travelers, Oakland’s main airport could soon brand itself with the words “San Francisco.”  

Officials at the Port of Oakland said on Friday that they were considering a change, going from the Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK), its current name, to “San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport.”  

While a mouthful, the hope with the new name, according to the officials, is to give the airport a boost in geographic recognition among travelers. That could lead to more traffic into the airport, a larger focus from airlines, and then a boost in international and domestic service.  

The airport code (OAK) would stay the same and all that would change is the word “Metropolitan” being replaced with “San Francisco Bay.”  

“We’ve found that nearly half of frequent international travelers and nearly a third of domestic travelers are unaware of OAK’s amazing location in the heart of Northern California and the San Francisco Bay Area,” Barbara Leslie, the president of the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners said on Friday.  

Leslie added that the lack of awareness has prevented airlines from investing in Oakland with new routes, and that raising awareness would help protect jobs at Oakland International and strengthen the economic impact of the airport on the city.  

“Adding San Francisco Bay to the name will improve travelers’ geographic awareness of the airport and help us reach and succeed in new markets,” she added.  

The issue now is that the only airport currently with the city of San Francisco in its name, San Francisco International Airport (SFO), is pushing back.  

Ivar Satero, the airport director of SFO, said on Monday that the name change would cause confusion among travelers, which could be devastating considering SFO’s status as one of the U.S.’s major international gateways. (SFO is one of the top 15 busiest airports in the U.S., with similar traffic as Newark Liberty in New Jersey and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston.)  

“We request the Metropolitan Oakland International Airport not proceed with any name change that would incorporate the use of ‘San Francisco’, as this would only result in confusion and inconvenience to the traveling public we all serve,” Satero said on Monday.  

While the proposal seems drastic, and there is no disputing that OAK is fully outside the city of San Francisco, it does border San Francisco Bay. SFO is also technically outside the city of San Francisco, located in San Mateo County, just south of city limits. OAK is only a few miles further away from the city’s downtown than SFO.  

The name change proposal will now head to the Port of Oakland Board of Commissioners to consider during its next meeting on April 11.