Tag along and then be sure to take in a few of the great exhibits at SFO Airport next time you’re there. We’ve arranged a long layover at SFO this week just so we can see the Airplane Model exhibit in the International Terminal.
Over the strong objections of San Francisco International Airport (SFO), last week the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners went ahead and unanimously voted to change the name of “Metropolitan Oakland International Airport” to “San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport.”
The airport’s three-letter code (OAK) and its logo are not changing. But if you go to the airport’s website, you’ll see that the name has already been changed pretty much everywhere else.
Now lawsuits are flying between OAK and SFO
When OAK floated its name name change idea, the city San Francisco and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) weren’t happy.
So unhappy that the city of San Francisco filed a lawsuit claiming that, among other things, OAK airport was infringing on its trademark.
But OAK is firing back with a lawsuit of its own. OAK airport is asking a judge to rule that the airport’s new name does not infringe on the trademark of SFO, which is across the bay.
“This new name will cause confusion and chaos for travelers, which will damage the travel industry for the entire region,” said SFO City Attorney David Chiu.
Oakland disagrees.
“The Port disputes that the new name will create confusion with consumers as passengers booking flights into the region—like travelers to other major metropolitan areas throughout the world—will understand that the San Francisco Bay Area can contain more than one airport,” according to OAK’s lawsuit.
What do you think of San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport’s new name?
If you’re arriving, departing or making a connection at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), be sure to leave some time to explore some of the museum-quality exhibits offered by the SFO Museum.
The newest exhibition comes to SFO Airport courtesy of the Fowler Museum at UCLA. It features bells, rattles, harp lutes, drums, slit gongs, and lamellophones or “thumb pianos” from the West and Central African countries of Liberia, Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Here’s a bit about the exhibit from the museum:
Africa’s rich cultural heritage encompasses a tremendous range of music, musical instruments, and performing arts. The variety of instruments made and used in Africa ranges from drums, xylophones, and zithers, to electric guitars and keyboards. Many traditional musical instruments appear utilitarian, while others are embellished with geometric, anthropomorphic, and zoomorphic features, allowing them to simultaneously serve as works of art.
Take a look at a few images from the exhibit below and see the rest of the instruments in SFO’s Harvey Milk Terminal 1 through April 13, 2025.
Things are heating up the saga surrounding the proposed name change for Oakland International Airport (OAK).
On Monday, San Francisco city attorney’s office issued a statement threatening legal action if the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners goes ahead with the scheduled April 11 vote to change the name of the Metropoitan Oakland International Airport to “San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport.”
”Should you continue in these efforts, I intend to pursue legal action to prevent your use of the proposed new name,” SFO City Attorney David Chiu warned in his statement.
At the end of March, the Port of Oakland announced that it plans to add “San Francisco” to the name of the airport “to boost inbound travelers’ geographic awareness of the airport’s location on the San Francisco Bay.”
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has already raised alarms over that move, citing “serious concerns” over OAK’s actions.
“[W]e anticipate the new name being considered by the Metropolitan Oakland International Airport will cause confusion for the public, either through a misunderstanding of its physical location or its perceived relationship to SFO,” SFO Airport Director Ivar C. Satero said in a release.
OAK is undeterred.
Ahead of the April 11 meeting of the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners, the airport issued a release citing that it has the strong support of its major airlines, including Southwest Airlines, Volaris, and Spirit Airlines.
Artists of the Airways: Airline Travel Posters from the SFO Museum Collection is the newest exhibition at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
On view in the Aviation Museum and Library in the SFO’s International Terminal, the exhibit features the work of some wonderful airline poster artists from the early 1930s to 1980s.
Here’s a bit about the art of airline posters from the exhibition description:
With the advent of commercial aviation in the late 1910s and 1920s, and the novelty of traveling by airplane, artists initially illustrated aircraft on their posters to attract customers through this emerging medium of mass production.
During the 1930s, as commercial carriers expanded their fleets, routes, and services, artists soon began incorporating illustrations of the destinations as well, in conjunction with the airlines’ appeal to their target audience of primarily affluent American tourists.
These often included landscapes, landmarks, people, flora, and fauna intended to promote the airline’s service to the viewer. Although posters usually contained descriptive text, poster artists created images that were designed to convey a message the viewer would immediately understand.
All the posters reproduced in this exhibition are from the SFO Museum Collection, which consists of nearly thirteen hundred airline posters, from the 1920s to the present.
Look for Artists of the Airways: Airline Travel Posters from the SFO Museum Collection pre-security in the Aviation Museum and Library in the International Terminal of San Francisco International Airport through October 5, 2025.
The Port of Oakland, which operates Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK), wants to add “San Francisco” to its official name to raise awareness about its location on the San Francisco Bay.
If the plan goes forward, the new name will be San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport instead of Metropolitan Oakland International Airport (OAK).
The airport code OAK and the airport’s visual branding will stay the same.
“Market research and interviews with airline partners have shown that routes have not performed as well as they should have due to the lack of geographic awareness, making air carriers reluctant to sustain and add new routes in Oakland,” said Port of Oakland Interim Director of Aviation Craig Simon.
Here’s a short video explaining OAK’s name modification plan. Port Commissioners will vote on the plan at their April 11, 2024, Port Board meeting. If they approve it, OAK staff will start moving forward with the formal renaming.
“SFO has operated since 1927 and has used the name ‘San Francisco Airport’ or ‘San Francisco International Airport’ for most of its history, making it immediately recognizable to customers,” SFO director Ivar C. Satero said in a release. “Given this history, we anticipate the new name being considered by the Metropolitan Oakland International Airport will cause confusion for the public, either through a misunderstanding of its physical location or its perceived relationship to SFO. This concern is only compounded considering SFO’s status as a major international gateway.”
What do you think? Should SFO and OAK both have “San Francisco in their names?
“The types of airplane models, as well as the methods and materials used to construct them, have greatly varied over time. Yet model aircraft can be broadly categorized into two major types: ‘flying models, which fly similar to real aircraft and generally use radio controls and engines, and ‘static models’ which are built primarily for display,” the exhibit notes tell us.
The airplane models in this exhibit are from the twentieth century and were commissioned by airlines and aircraft manufacturers. Many of the models on exhibit are intricately detailed cutaway versions specificilly designed to give prospective customers at airports, airline sales offices, and travel agencies a view right into into the airliner’s cabin.
While there are thirteen airplane models in this exhibit, the SFO Museum’s collection includes nearly two thousand models representing a broad range of aircraft. Four of the models in this exhibition are unique static-display models scratch-built by Edward Chavez, a recognized master in the modeling community. And five of the airliner models are Gary Field (b. 1956) using similar methods to leading airliner model makers of the last century.
Certain Capital One cardholders and anyone willing to buy a $ 65 single visit pass can now spend their airport dwell time in the comfy Plaza Premium Lounge on Concourse A, on the mezzanine level near Gate A34.
Amenities include local artwork, plenty of comfy seating areas, private workspaces, phone booths, shower suites, a parents’ room, relaxation rooms, and plenty of tasty offerings for food and drink.
As with its other lounges, some of the dishes and drinks are very local. Here, for example, there’s a Colorado Ground Bison Sloppy Joe on the menu, draft beers curated by Cerveceria Colorado and some specialty cocktails created by Denver’s Yacht Club Bar.
(Images courtesy Denver International Airport)
SFO Museum presents Kay Sekimachi: Weaving Traditions
Her weavings feature a wide range of media and techniques, including on- and off-loom textiles, stitched-paper forms, and molded fiber bowls.
The exhibit, Kay Sekimachi: Weaving Traditions, presents a retrospective of Kay Sekimachi’s extraordinary woven art from the collection of Forrest L. Merrill and is at SFO’s Harvey Milk Terminal 1
New artwork to greet passengers at Salt Lake City Int’l Airport
Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) already has several large-scale artworks by artist Gordon Huether, including the 400-foot Canyon (above).
Coming soon: the completion of his 90-foot outdoor art piece echoing the mountain peaks for which Utah is famous.
SFO Airport is celebrating Dia de Los Muertos
San Fransisco International Airport (SFO) is celebrating Dia de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead) with an altar, a mural, and live cultural performances through November 7 in Harvey Milk Terminal 1 and Terminal 2.
In Harvey Milk Terminal 1, look for the “Tree of Life” altar created in partnership with the Mission Center for Cultural Arts, and feel free to add the names of your loved ones to the altar.
In Terminal 2, artist Adrian Arias will paint a mural titled “Ancestral Hummingbird with Moon,” influenced by his Peruvian background.
Celebrating Dia de los Muertos in Harvey Milk Terminal 1 with a beautiful altar created by the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. Honor your loved ones – write their name on the notes and place it on the altar. #SFOCelebrates#DiaDeLosMuertos#FlySFOpic.twitter.com/Yc03HxdZ9Z
— San Francisco International Airport (SFO) ✈️ (@flySFO) October 18, 2023
Pittsburgh International Airport’s new terminal progressing nicely
We were proud to have @ACE_Fitzgerald make the first official drive up the Departures curb at our new terminal this morning. Along with PIT CEO Christina Cassotis, he gave the media a tour so everyone could see our incredible progress. See for yourself ⬇️ #airport#aviationnewspic.twitter.com/rACLzdrwZa
— Pittsburgh International Airport (@PITairport) October 16, 2023
Here’s some background on this art form, courtesy of the SFO Museum:
Discarded steel oil drums have historically served as the base material for Haitian metal artists. The drums are flattened into sheets and designs are chalked on; pieces are then cut and sculpted using only hand tools and further enhanced by hammering, embossing, cutting holes, and bending the metal. Sculptures reflect everyday life portraits, imaginative themes, and motifs of Haitian Vodou, an African Diasporic religion. Some of the many forms that appear include angels and winged creatures, mermaids and other aquatic figures, musical bands, animals, and earthly, paradisiacal scenes.
Entwined figures by Georges Liautaud. Courtesy SFO Museum
