The announcement last week said the airport, which is just half an hour’s drive from downtown, was missing out on business due to lack of “geographic awareness”.
Mayor Sheng Thao, for the region across the Bay Bridge, says it is less about saving air travellers from a lengthy diversion to New Zealand and more about boosting business for the Bay.
“Considering a name modification to highlight our location within the vibrant San Francisco Bay Area could offer several benefits,” she said.
But not everyone is happy.
On Monday San Francisco International Airport published a statement that it had “serious concerns”. Worrying about how similar the new name was to theirs, they said the change increased “potential for customer confusion and disservice”.
Craig Simon, Oakland Airport’s interim aviation director, has pushed back on critics - including San Francisco International Airport - saying that it was time to make its location clearer.
“Modifying our name will help us compete for new destinations, which will benefit all travellers. There’s no confusion; OAK has been located on the San Francisco Bay since 1927.”
The change may be a big help for some international travellers.
In simplified Chinese both Auckland and Oakland are written as ‘奥克兰’, with readers having to rely on context to differentiate between the two. Although very few travellers actually follow through on their mistake as far as booking the flight.
If approved, the IATA airport code OAK would not change.
The name change is to be considered at a port commissioners meeting on April 11.
