Southwest Continues Expansion at OAK

December 17, 2014

Press Release

For Immediate Release
December 17, 2014

Southwest Continues Expansion at Oakland International Airport

New Daily Nonstops to Link Nashville, New Orleans with Bay Area Starting in June

Oakland, CA – Dec. 17, 2014 – Oakland International Airport (OAK) and Southwest Airlines have announced the expansion of Southwest’s operations at OAK with the addition of new nonstop flights linking Oakland with Nashville and New Orleans beginning June 7, 2015.

The new services represent the third and fourth new OAK routes announced by Southwest for 2015, following earlier announcements of new service to Baltimore-Washington DC (BWI) and Dallas / Love (DAL) starting January 6, 2015. The new additions bring to 22 the number of Southwest Airlines nonstop destinations from OAK, the carrier’s largest operational base in California.

Starting June 7, Southwest will operate nonstop flights departing Nashville International Airport (BNA) daily at 1:55 p.m. CST and arriving at Oakland International Airport at 4:25 p.m. PST. The eastbound flight will depart Oakland daily at 11:00 a.m. PST and arrive at Nashville at 5:10 p.m. CST.

Also starting June 7, Southwest will operate daily nonstop service departing Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) Mondays through Fridays and Sundays at 3:20 p.m. CST and arriving at Oakland at 5:50 p.m. PST. The new service will depart Oakland the same days of the week at 11:45 a.m. PST and arrive at New Orleans at 5:50 p.m. CST. On Saturdays, the flight will depart New Orleans at 4:55 p.m. CST and arrive at Oakland at 7:25 p.m. PST, with the eastbound flight departing Oakland at 5:30 p.m. PST and arriving in New Orleans at 9:35 p.m. CST.

“It is exciting to see Southwest adding yet more service at OAK, and giving more customers across the country the most user-friendly access to the Bay Area” said Deborah Ale Flint, Director of Aviation for Port of Oakland. “We are particularly pleased with the addition of Nashville and New Orleans, two cities with strong cultural and business ties to Oakland and the San Francisco Bay Area region.”

Southwest will offer 108 peak-day departures from OAK in the Summer schedule effective June 7, 2015. More than 2,400 Southwest employees are based at OAK, including pilots, flight attendants, customer service, air cargo, aircraft maintenance, ground equipment and commissary personnel. The carrier began service from OAK in 1986.

“Our customers prefer the convenience and reliability of Oakland International when they travel to and from the San Francisco Bay Area,” said Andrew Watterson, vice president of planning and performance at Southwest Airlines. “Our growth at OAK in 2015 is a reflection of that preference and takes full advantage of the airport’s new BART station.”

San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) opened a new extension between its Coliseum Station and a new Oakland International Airport Station on November 22, 2014.

“This is a great new destination for Nashville International Airport and the Nashville community,” Rob Wigington, president and CEO of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA), said. “The San Francisco Bay Area has been our top priority for domestic service and the largest market without nonstop service. We are very excited that Southwest Airlines will now connect the Bay Area to Nashville so that our businesses, conventions and visitors can fly nonstop.”

Iftikhar Ahmad, Director of Aviation for the New Orleans Aviation Board, said, “We have aggressively pursued the return of Oakland service with Southwest Airlines since I came to New Orleans in 2010. Oakland was one of our top underserved destinations, and we are very excited Southwest will be connecting our two cities once again.”

Members of the news media needing information or assistance in reporting news about Oakland International Airport may call the airport’s 24-hour Media Hotline at (510) 563-6500.

About the Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland oversees the Oakland seaport and Oakland International Airport. The Port’s jurisdiction includes 20 miles of waterfront from the Bay Bridge through Oakland International Airport. The Oakland seaport is the fifth busiest container port in the U.S.; Oakland International Airport is the second largest San Francisco Bay Area airport offering over 300 daily passenger and cargo flights; and the Port’s real estate includes commercial developments such as Jack London Square and hundreds of acres of public parks and conservation areas. Together, through Port operations and those of its tenants and users, the Port supports more than 73,000 jobs in the region and nearly 827,000 jobs across the United States. The Port of Oakland was established in 1927 and is an independent department of the City of Oakland.
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