American and Continental End Oakland Flights Next Week

As we reported over the summer, both American and Continental Airlines will discontinue Oakland operations. The move, part of a series of cutbacks by each airline, means passengers will need to choose other Bay Area airports for their travel needs.

American Airlines ends flights effective September 2nd.
Continental Airlines ends flights effective September 3rd.

Airline Cutbacks Arriving Soon At Oakland

Many airlines, forced to shrink capacity, are thinning routes or even dropping them entirely from their route map. Oakland Airport has been hit particularly with the downturn in the industry. The following is a recap of announced cutbacks for the next few months at Oakland International:

• American Airlines will cease Oakland operations on September 2nd. The airline has daily non-stops to its Dallas hub.
• Continental Airlines will also end operations the next day, September 3rd. It operates flights to its Houston hub.
• United Airlines, which operates daily flights to Los Angeles will end on November 2nd.
• Southwest will drop its daily non-stop to Tucson, effective November 3rd.
• Taca Airlines, operating a daily flight to San Salvador will end on September 1st.
• ExpressJet will end flights to Salt Lake City on September 1st.

American to eliminate Oakland flights

According to a spokesman from Oakland International Airport, American Airlines will be cancelling all flights from the airport beginning September 3rd. According to the spokesperson, eliminating Oakland flights is part of a larger plan to reduce the airlines domestic flying by 5 percent.

American Airlines represented only 1 percent of Oakland International's total aviation revenue. But, American's move to withdraw from Oakland follows on the heels of ATA, Aloha and Skybus Airlines who abruptly ended operations last month, affecting thousands of Oakland flyers.

American says it will accommodate affected passengers by using flights currently operated through San Francisco or San Jose Airports, where a broader network of American flights is available.

Some content obtained from the San Jose Mercury News