San Francisco says it will sue if Oakland goes ahead with changing the name of its airport from Metropolitan Oakland International Airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport.
The new name, which references Oakland’s position in the east of the San Francisco Bay, violates the trademark of San Francisco International Airport, city officials said.
“In addition to the immense confusion and chaos the renaming would cause for travelers and consumers generally, this proposal also infringes on SFO’s trademark. … If Oakland moves forward with this proposal, San Francisco will pursue legal action to prevent misuse of our trademark,” San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said this week.
The change is meant to make it clear to more travelers that the Oakland airport is more convenient for them to use, Oakland officials say.
The name change “will boost inbound travelers’ geographic awareness of the airport by highlighting the airport’s location on the San Francisco Bay. This name will make it clear that OAK is the closest major airport, for 4.1 million people … and California’s Wine Country,” Oakland Port Commission President Barbara Leslie said in a statement.
The three-letter codes for the two airports, SFO for San Francisco and OAK for Oakland, would stay the same.
The Board of Supervisors in San Mateo County, home of the San Francisco airport, also opposes the name change, writing that it “has the potential to cause significant confusion for the traveling public and others, as well as to cause adverse economic impacts for businesses that have products delivered by plane.”
The Oakland Board of Port Commissioners on Thursday voted unanimously to give preliminary approval to the name change. If full approval is given at a second reading scheduled for May 9, the name change would go through.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors backs the name change. The airport is in the county.
“The term San Francisco Bay Area is commonly known in California as the nine-county region of California surrounding and including the San Francisco Bay,” the Alameda board wrote in a proclamation of support released Thursday.
Some major airlines also have expressed support.
“Oakland helped put us on the map in California and we’re wholeheartedly supportive of this rebranding that acknowledges OAK’s economic position and influence in the San Francisco Bay area while staying true to its Oakland roots,” Southwest Airlines Senior Vice President of Marketing Jennifer Bridie said in a release from the Port of Oakland.
Spirit Airlines Vice President of Network Planning John Kirby said that “we fully support the Board of Port Commissioners’ proposal to rename the airport in a way that highlights its proximity to San Francisco.”
Southwest and Spirit are the largest and second-largest air carriers at the Oakland airport, respectively.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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