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The peculiar logic of airport acronyms

by Mark D. Harmon

You have to know history to label your luggage on its flight to Tennessee. Knoxville doesn't have a single letter in common with its TYS tag. A historian might know that the Tyson family donated the land in honor of their son, Charles McGhee Tyson, killed in World War I.

The main Nashville airport is BNA. The "B" draws from Col. Harry Berry who helped build it. Intuition is not always your best guide when it comes to airport abbreviations. If you're headed to Lubbock, Texas, and your bag is marked LUB, then your luggage may be headed to Lumid Pau, Guyana. The correct code is LBB.

Or perhaps you've noticed that Los Angeles' airport is abbreviated LAX, but have you ever wondered how self-defeating it would be to work in LAX Security?

Proving Congress has a twisted sense of humor, it recently renamed National Airport to honor Ronald Reagan, the president who fired striking air traffic controllers. (Wouldn't renaming the Bureau of National Debt have been more fitting for Reagan?)

If you're using a computer database that relies on three-letter airport abbreviations, only great local knowledge or a reference kit could help you find CVG for Cincinnati, Ohio, or CMH for Columbus, Ohio. The Cincy airport actually is in Covington, Kentucky. Columbus is so full of already-used letters that we must dig two letters into its state to complete CMH. Its airport name is no help, which is Port Columbus. No ocean-going waterway may be found in central Ohio.

Clearly we need to create a more intuitive system of three-letter airport abbreviations. Let me start the debate with some suggestions.

Some airport slugs have obvious connections to what happens or what is done at a place. Portland, Oregon, WET; Denver, SKI; Phoenix, HOT; Ft. Lauderdale, TAN; Washington National, TAX; Houston, OIL; Tucson, DRY; Las Vegas, BET; Miami, SUN; Detroit, CAR.

Some sports nicknames also should be considered for airport slugs. LaGuardia is so close to Shea Stadium that MET is the logical choice, as is CUB for Chicago, O'Hare and RED for Cincinnati. Philadelphia fans tend to be demanding, so BOO will be well understood. JET will go to Newark because of the nearby Meadowlands, but SKY will go to Seattle to keep Boeing happy. SOX presents the usual red v. white problem. In this case the pale hose get SOX for Chicago Midway Airport. Boston's Logan becomes TEA in honor of the nearby historic party.

Mrs. O'Leary's cow and the stockyards present another tempting choice for Chicago, but somehow COW seems more appropriate for Fort Worth. The Dallas part of that hub will have to join the cattle drive.

San Francisco's Bay has airports on opposing sides and a third nearby, making it easy for San Francisco to be GAY, Oakland to be OUT, and San Jose to be NOT. San Diego gets recognition for its ZOO. Folks in Pittsburgh have many good qualities, including the ability to laugh at the designation PIT. The hearty people of Buffalo get ICE, while down the road Syracuse is ICY.

Owing to Garrison Keillor's observations, Minneapolis and Saint Paul have a lock on SHY, but they may not assert the claim.

One should forget collegiate nicknames and influences. Columbus, Ohio, has so heartily embraced its local university that OSU is the only logical choice, as is TAR for one of the North Carolina airports.

New York is a good place to raise a beer, but some might object to Kennedy Airport becoming MUG because of alternative connotations. Milwaukee gets ALE, and as a consolation Saint Louis is ARC. Anyone who has been to New Orlean's French Quarter would approve the slug RUE.

Common abbreviations also can be used, as in RPM for Daytona. (Sorry, Indianapolis, but you can have LAP.) Los Angeles' entertainment industry deserves PIX as an airport. Holding off other strong contenders, Kansas City gets BBQ. Roswell, New Mexico, is the only choice for UFO.

The new intuitive system also will work for overseas destinations: London FOG; Paris, ART; Rome, EAT; Tokyo, WOK; Athens, URN; Tehran, RUG; Bogota, POT; Ankara, ARK, Mexico City, OLE, Montreal OUI, and Jerusalem, OYE.

The system even could raise money. Cities could bid for positive tags like NEW, WOW, NOW, BIG, AIR, and WIN. Atlanta's most famous millionaire, for the right price, could have TED. Those cities failing to bid will get OLD, ILL, FAT, AIL, SAG, IRK, BAD, RAT, and END. So the next time you're headed to Lubbock, WHY?

Mark D. Harmon teaches courses in broadcasting at the University of Tennessee when he is not flying in and out of Knoxville (TYS).