Alaska Airlines is making moves in Northern California as Alaska Air moves to SFO Terminal 1. This move promises a better experience and convenience for passengers at one of Alaska’s primary gateways in the Golden State.
Alaska Airlines has called Terminal 2 at San Francisco International Airport home for a while now. I always liked the location, as Terminal 2 is home to Napa Farms Market. However, strategically, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense for them to be there. After all, Terminal 2 also houses Delta Air Lines, Air Canada, and Breeze. Sure, that might have been for the better when Delta and Alaska worked together, but that’s no longer the case today. So, of course, something had to change.
Alaska Air Moves to SFO Terminal 1
San Francisco International Airport is one of Alaska’s primary hubs, which itself is a legacy of its acquisition of Virgin America. However, as mentioned earlier, its legacy location is no longer optimal. After all, since it acquired Virgin, Alaska has gone on to join the Oneworld alliance, which aligns it with American Airlines. So, naturally, it would be best if Alaska could operate out of the same terminal as its domestic partner. And that’s precisely what they’re doing.
Alaska Air moves to SFO Terminal 1, also known as Harvey Milk Terminal 1. The terminal has been newly renovated, and the images of the new space are amazing!
Of course, moving to Terminal 1 places Alaska Air in the same space as partner American Airlines, though rivals JetBlue and Southwest also operate out of the terminal. It’s also worth noting that they don’t yet have a lounge in Terminal 1. A new Alaska Lounge is coming – in fact, the second largest in their network – and is slated to open sometime in July 2024. For the time being, passengers will need to continue to visit Terminal 2 to enjoy the existing Alaska Lounge. The good news is that you can transit between the two airside.
It’s worth noting that Terminal 1 is also located next to International Terminal A, which is where many of Alaska Air’s Oneworld international partners, such as British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Qantas, and Qatar.
Hawaiian Airlines
Since we’re discussing about how Alaska Air moves to SFO Terminal 1, I’d like to point out that Hawaiian Airlines also operates out of International Terminal A, along with other oddball domestic carriers, such as Frontier. However, post-merger, I’m sure Hawaiian will move to Terminal 1 along with Alaska. In fact, this is already planned for Honolulu, as I’m sure will be the case throughout both airlines’ networks.
Alaska Air Moves to SFO Terminal 1, Final Thoughts
There’s no doubt that this move is a good thing. Initially, I was a bit bummed, as I enjoy browsing Napa Farms Market. However, since you can transit between both terminals airside, it doesn’t bother me one bit. It’s certainly a less crazy thing to do than the time I went to the American Express Centurion Lounge over in Terminal 3, which solely serves United. The ticket checkers at the TSA lanes didn’t really want to let me through, as I was ticketed to fly on Alaska, but they relented when I explained that I was going to the Centurion Lounge (which ended up being a waste of time).
At any rate, I’d like to say that I can’t wait to see the newly renovated SFO Terminal 1. However, I prefer SJC in the area, as the airport is far less chaotic, and its CONRAC is way more convenient. So, it isn’t likely that I’ll be back to SFO, at least not anytime soon.