Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Travel&Dining > TravelBuzz
Reload this Page >

meaning of obscure airport/airline codes?

Community
Wiki Posts
Search

meaning of obscure airport/airline codes?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Jan 5, 2004, 12:49 pm
  #16  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Michigan
Programs: AA ExPlat, UA 1K, DL 1MM/Silver
Posts: 1,615
Anyone know why Spokane is GEG?
geoffco is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 2:57 pm
  #17  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Not here; there!
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 29,584
Here's a link to an article from ten years ago that explains, among other things, why Spokane is GEG, and Kahului is OGG:

http://www.skygod.com/asstd/abc.html

guv1976 is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 4:57 pm
  #18  
Moderator, Hilton Honors
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: on a short leash
Programs: some
Posts: 71,422
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by suranyi:
Similarly, commercial airport codes generally cannot begin with K or W.</font>
There are several in NZ that start with K and W, eg KKE, KAT, WHK, WLG, WSZ.
Kiwi Flyer is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 5:04 pm
  #19  
 
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: UK
Posts: 7,560
I believe this restriction only applies in the USA, and it probably has something to do with the fact that K and W are radio codes for the USA (used by radio amateurs - who also use N - and broadcast radio stations)
Aviatrix is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 6:03 pm
  #20  
In Memoriam
 
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Easton, CT, USA
Programs: ua prem exec, Former hilton diamond
Posts: 31,801
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by JeremyZ:
The mailing address is in White Plains, no?</font>

The mailing address is white plains, but I believe that airport is physicially located in harrison and rye brook. If you look at the map over at

http://www.westchester1.com/west_county/map.asp

You can see that it's not in White Plains, but they have the airport marker so big you can't see where it really is. I believe it's closer to the Connecticut border then it is to the White Plains city line.
cordelli is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 6:08 pm
  #21  
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: BUR
Programs: AAdvantage, Delta SkyMiles
Posts: 650
According to LAWA, the X in LAX does not stand for anything. Originally, airport codes were two letters. When a third one was required, they just randomly chose X.

------------------
Best regards,
Dairenn Lombard
Los Angeles, CA
dlombard is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 7:21 pm
  #22  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Hyatt Contributor Badge
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Honolulu, Hawaiʻi [+MKK4 EBBER R577 EDSEL R577 ELKEY EXERT]
Posts: 15,826
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by dlombard:
According to LAWA, the X in LAX does not stand for anything. Originally, airport codes were two letters. When a third one was required, they just randomly chose X.
</font>
Why not just have made that letter V. It would be more of an accurate depiction of the airport.

LAV

aloha
slippahs is offline  
Old Jan 5, 2004, 8:04 pm
  #23  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: DCA
Programs: AMC MovieWatcher, Giant BonusCard, Petco PALS Card, Silver Diner Blue Plate Club
Posts: 22,297
My personal favorite is Freso Air Terminal, or FAT.

The city desperately wants the code changed to FYI (or Freso Yosemite International) to market to folks heading to Yosemite that they should fly into Fresno (as opposed to, say, SJC).. and to sound like a bigger deal (International.. even though there's no non-stop international service ).

There are even FYI/Fresno Yosemite International signs all over the airport. But the code remains FAT.
gleff is offline  
Old Jan 6, 2004, 4:19 am
  #24  
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Terra Australis Cognita
Posts: 5,350
My (least?) favorite is CGK, which has has no obvious correlation to any of "Jakarta", "Soekarno-Hatta International airport", or "Indonesia". It took a bit of digging to figure out that it stands for Cengkarang, the name of the hamlet it was built in...

FWIW, "JAK" is Jacmel, Haiti, but "JKT" is Jakarta Metropolican Area -- kind of like "NYC", except that there's only one international airport in Jakarta, making it rather useless!


[This message has been edited by jpatokal (edited Jan 06, 2004).]
jpatokal is offline  
Old Jan 6, 2004, 7:00 am
  #25  
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: London, England.
Programs: BA
Posts: 8,476
There are many reasons behind the codes and one could write a long article about them (there's a link to one above, but it's got a few inaccuracies).

The codes we use here are the simpler, "public-facing" set determined by IATA, 2 character for airlines and 3-character for airports. Inside the industry, such as on flight plans, there is another set known as ICAO codes, 3-character for airlines and 4-character for airports. The relationship betwen these two sets gives some more clues to the more puzzling codes, such as why all the Canadian ones begin with Y.

Two-character airline codes are in particularly short supply nowadays, which is why new entrants like Jet Blue have to put up with B6 (JB already belonged to helicopter operator Helijet in Vancouver BC). Jet Blue's ICAO code is more sensibly JBU. There has long been a proposal to make the 3-character airline codes standard, but as the established airlines would have to reprogram all their computer systems and it would only really benefit the new entrants, this has been resisted.
WHBM is offline  
Old Jan 6, 2004, 8:19 am
  #26  
Suspended
 
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,861
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by gleff:
The city desperately wants the code changed to FYI (or Freso Yosemite International) to market to folks heading to Yosemite that they should fly into Fresno (as opposed to, say, SJC).. and to sound like a bigger deal (International.. even though there's no non-stop international service ).

There are even FYI/Fresno Yosemite International signs all over the airport. But the code remains FAT.
</font>
They are making their airport into a joke by calling it international. Fort Wayne and Lubbock have nice airports that have become jokes with "international". I have heard passengers at those airport joke at the int'l part. Heathrow doesn't have to call itself "international". They are.

seat 50J is offline  
Old Jan 6, 2004, 10:14 am
  #27  
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: RIC
Programs: US CP, Hilton Gold, Hyatt Plat, *wood Gold, Amex Plat
Posts: 1,600
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by seat 50J:
XNA for Fayetteville/Northwest Arkansas isn't a good airport code. Neither is:
- BNA Nashville (not sure what the origin is, perhaps there's a town of Blair/Nashville)
- TYS in Knoxville must be someone's name. Perhaps Tyson?
</font>
Ones that I don't think were answered elsewhere:

XNA = (I swear!) Exciting New Airport
BNA = Berry Field Nashville
TYS = You are correct, the Tysons donated the land

(edit to reduce size of quoted text and remove reference to article already posted.)

[This message has been edited by MikeLaw (edited Jan 06, 2004).]
MikeLaw is offline  
Old Jan 6, 2004, 11:58 pm
  #28  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Somwhere on the highways and byways of the United States
Programs: WWBTNFTMTP Evangelist
Posts: 16,737
I have heard that HP is because America West started by buying out Hawaiin Pacific.
myefre is offline  
Old Jan 7, 2004, 5:17 pm
  #29  
In memoriam
 
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: IAD, BOS, PVD
Programs: UA, US, AS, Marriott, Radisson, Hilton
Posts: 7,203
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by gleff:
My personal favorite is Freso Air Terminal, or FAT.
</font>
One of my traveling and dining companions
and I were thinking of doing a Wenatchee to Fresno run, but just as we
were getting to it, United quit flying to EAT.
So we went to Rover's instead.

True story, SHMG.
violist is offline  
Old Jan 7, 2004, 5:42 pm
  #30  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: New York, NY
Programs: BAEC Gold, Delta Platinum, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Gold, AMEX Platinum (US)
Posts: 18,487
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by violist:
One of my traveling and dining companions
and I were thinking of doing a Wenatchee to Fresno run, but just as we
were getting to it, United quit flying to EAT.
So we went to Rover's instead.

True story, SHMG.
</font>
For some reason reminds me of this thread
Fraser is offline  


Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.