OAKLAND — San Francisco is suing Oakland over a controversial try to add “San Francisco Bay” to the official name of Oakland International Airport, marking the beginning of a possible legal battle between the 2 cities.
The East Bay aviation complex — which, like its busier rival to the west, borders San Francisco Bay — is searching for a brand new name to lift its profile amongst air travelers visiting the Bay Area.
The Port of Oakland gave preliminary approval on April 11 to vary the name of OAK to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport, sparking a right away outcry from elected officials in San Francisco and SFO leaders. The port, which operates the East Bay airport, is scheduled to carry a final vote on the problem in May.
San Francisco hit back Thursday with the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.
“We had hoped that Oakland would come to its senses,” San Francisco District Attorney David Chiu said in an announcement. “Defendant (Oakland’s) refusal to cooperate on an acceptable alternative name leaves us no choice but to file a lawsuit to protect SFO’s trademark.”
In response, the Port of Oakland said it believes the name change is not going to harm San Francisco International Airport.
“The proposed renaming of Oakland Airport does not violate SFO’s branding,” said Kaley Skantz, a spokeswoman for OAK.
Port officials decided to make the name change because East Bay Airport's profile was starting to fade in SFO's economic shadow and since East Bay Airport was physically situated on the shores of the Bay.
“We will vigorously defend our right to claim our place in San Francisco Bay,” Skantz said. “We are committed to Oakland and our East Bay community.”
In 2023, SFO served greater than 50 million passengers, while Oakland handled roughly 11.24 million air travelers.
OAK officials consider the airport's lower profile has made it harder for the travel hub to keep up routes. From July 2008 to March 2024, Oakland added 54 recent routes but later lost 39 of them.
But San Francisco airport officials worry that selecting a brand new name with “San Francisco” initially could cause confusion.
“In particular, Oakland Airport's proposal to place 'San Francisco' initially of its recent name, closely followed by the words 'International Airport,' is problematic because it would almost definitely cause confusion amongst consumers and the general public at large “San Francisco said in its lawsuit.
SFO and city of San Francisco officials said they tried to barter an out-of-court solution to the proposed name change.
“San Francisco is committed to avoiding the costs of litigation for both sides and further encourages Oakland to seriously consider such alternatives,” the lawsuit states. “In fact, San Francisco has repeatedly offered to engage in constructive dialogue” about resolving the situation.
SFO, situated south of the town of the identical name in San Mateo County, said it has been in operation since 1927 and has used San Francisco Airport or San Francisco International Airport as its name for many of those years.
“Through San Francisco’s ongoing operations, the San Francisco International Airport brand has become widely recognized by passengers and the air travel industry both nationally and internationally,” San Francisco’s lawsuit states.
“We’re going all in with Oakland,” Barbara Leslie, president of the port’s Board of Commissioners, said April 11, shortly before the unanimous vote for the brand new nickname. “We want to keep money in the local economy.”
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