I don't know the area, and I'm no expert, but I would have said, "About 7
miles south of Portland-Hillsboro in Oregon". Generally the ATCs know
towered airports out a ways, and Portland is a big enough name that even
in Oakland they would have recognized at least where to start looking.

I'm on the east coast, but generally if I'm asking for Flight Following
here in NY, and I'm crossing a state line or two, I will tell them what
state my destination is from the initial request...

That might have been why the first guy got snippy with you - he's
watching a sector in CA, and you're expecting him to know the names of
all of the teeny little airports in a 500 mile circle... And not even
telling him what state he's supposed to be looking at...

(Ben Jackson) wrote in
news:SAbjc.42018$_L6.2563007@attbi_s53:

Leaving OAK I called ground and asked for flight following to 7S3
(which I gave by name and spelled phonetically). Later, while I'm
taxiing they come back with "where is that" and I couldn't imagine
how I could help them if the identifier didn't, so I came up with
"near McMinnville", which is both a nearby airport and the name of
the FSS. There was a pause and they came back with "we would call
that 'Oregon'" and gave me a squawk.

On climbout with Norcal approach and later Oakland center my
destination came up at least once with each controller. One thought it
was MMV. One of them accepted 7S3 without argument and asked for my
route of flight, which I gave as "direct Maxwell VOR and then airways"
which started a new round of "what's the closest navaid to your
destination" and I offered to amend my destination to HIO. She
explained that she just needed to know if she should hand me off (to
Travis AFB?). I think my destination finally "stuck" then because it
didn't come up again.

So, "where" IS my destination? Is there anything I could have said
that would have made it clear? Would they be confused if I just asked
for flight following to the Newberg VOR?