A VIP Breakfast at Oakland International Airport (OAK) Dec. 12, marks substantial completion of the Airport’s renovated and expanded International Arrivals Building (IAB). The $45 million Terminal 1 upgrade includes 13,000 sq. ft. of additional space incorporating a new baggage carousel and an expanded passenger primary processing room – all creating a dramatically improved customer experience for arriving international travelers at OAK.
With international passenger traffic up 134 percent in the two years since advance planning and construction began on the IAB Project (Oct-2015 to Oct-2017), the expansion of OAK’s IAB allows the Airport to better accommodate growing demand and increasing passenger levels arriving from foreign markets in Mexico and throughout Europe. In 2017, both Norwegian Air and LEVEL began service to Barcelona, British Airways began service to London Gatwick, and Southwest began service to Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. Norwegian will begin nonstop service to Paris and Rome in early 2018.
Bryant L. Francis, Port of Oakland's director of aviation said, “This is an incredible milestone worthy of recognition at OAK, and we couldn’t be more proud to welcome our customers into this beautiful new space. We have worked in tremendous partnership with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, multiple air carriers, and many other stakeholders in order to bring the promise of OAK’s international potential to fruition. This enhanced facility will allow us to better accommodate the increasing international segment of our business.”
Technological Highlights and Upgrades to OAK’s new IAB facility include:
- 14 passenger processing booths, includes +4 newly added.
- 16 Automated Passport Control units, includes +8 added in April 2016.
- 2 Global Entry units.
- 2 new bag re-claim carousels, replacing 1 old unit.
- More modern, expansive, clean designwith passenger circulation space doubled
- New and updated restroom facilities, seismic upgrades and building systems infrastructure upgrades.
- New lighting, flooring, finishes, expansive windowsand skylights
- Reconfigured offices for Customs and Border Protection services.
OAK’s Terminal 1 facility was constructed in 1962, and houses the International Arrivals Building (IAB), which was built as an extension of Terminal 1 in 1972. Prior to today’s opening, international arrival operations had been limited to one widebody aircraft (300 passengers) at a time. With the expanded facility in operation, two widebody aircraft can be processed simultaneously, with a processing capacity of over 600 passengers per hour.
OAK now has 14 international destinations and over 60 total: London, Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, Terceira, Guadalajara, Mexico City, Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, Morelia and Leon.
