What you're seeing over San Francisco
The jets over San Francisco are mostly heading to or from SFO, which sits on the bay shore about 12 miles south of downtown. United runs one of its largest hubs there, with a big transpacific operation, so long-haul widebodies bound for Asia and Australia are a normal sight. Oakland, across the bay, adds Southwest flights and a large FedEx operation, and San Jose sits at the bay's southern end.
SFO's famous pairs of closely spaced parallel runways let it land two jets side by side in good weather. With the usual west winds off the Pacific, most arrivals come in from the southeast over the bay, so the city itself mostly sees aircraft at mid-altitudes on arrival routes along the coast or over the East Bay, plus departures climbing out over the bay and the Peninsula. Fog changes everything: when the marine layer is low, SFO can only use one runway for arrivals at a time, and delays ripple across the country. The live map shows which runways are in use, and our glossary explains the instrument approaches that keep things moving in fog.
Airports near San Francisco
- major hubSFOSan Francisco International Airport
KSFO · 11 miles south of downtown
A major United hub and transpacific gateway with two pairs of closely spaced parallel runways. Live traffic at SFO ↗ - commercialOAKOakland San Francisco Bay Airport
KOAK · 12 miles east of downtown
An East Bay airport with a large Southwest operation and a major FedEx hub. Live traffic at OAK ↗ - commercialSJCSan José Mineta International Airport
KSJC · 39 miles southeast of downtown
Silicon Valley's airport at the south end of the bay, busy with Southwest and Alaska flights. Live traffic at SJC ↗ - militaryNUQMoffett Federal Airfield
KNUQ · 32 miles southeast of downtown
A former naval air station near Mountain View used by NASA Ames, the California Air National Guard and some corporate aircraft. Live traffic at NUQ ↗ - general aviationHAFHalf Moon Bay Airport
KHAF · 19 miles south of downtown
A coastal general aviation airport often used for scenic flights along the Pacific. Live traffic at HAF ↗
Common traffic over San Francisco
United dominates SFO with 737 MAX 9s, A320-family jets, regional jets and a large widebody fleet of 777s and 787s for routes to Asia, Australia and Europe. Alaska, Delta, American and Southwest add domestic service, and Asian carriers such as Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, EVA, ANA and Japan Airlines bring A350s, 777s and 787s. Evening is the busiest time for transpacific departures.
In plain English, the normal west-wind configuration works like this:
- Arrivals typically land toward the west on SFO's 28 runways, approaching from the southeast over the bay, often in pairs.
- Departures usually take off to the north on the 1 runways, climbing over the bay before turning. Heavy long-haul jets sometimes depart west and climb through the gap in the hills over Daly City and Pacifica.
When storms bring south winds, SFO switches to a less common configuration and the city can see more arrivals overhead. Oakland traffic, much of it Southwest, crosses the East Bay and the bay itself, and FedEx's Oakland hub adds large freighters, many at night.
Helicopters include tour flights over the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, news and police helicopters, and medevac services. The Coast Guard operates MH-65 helicopters from Air Station San Francisco, at SFO. During Fleet Week in October, the Blue Angels and other military aircraft perform low over the waterfront.
Aircraft you'll often see here
Boeing 737 MAX 9
narrowbody airliner
Airbus A320
narrowbody airliner
Airbus A321
narrowbody airliner
Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner
long-haul widebody twin-jet
Boeing 777-300ER
long-haul widebody twin-jet
Airbus A350-900
long-haul widebody twin-jet
Embraer E175
regional jet
Boeing 737-800
narrowbody airliner
Plane-spotting tips for San Francisco
Bayfront Park in Millbrae is one of the best-known spotting places near SFO, with arrivals on the 28 runways passing close by and departures rolling past. Coyote Point Recreation Area in San Mateo also gives good views of arrivals over the bay. In the city, Twin Peaks and Bernal Heights give wide panoramas, though aircraft are higher there. For Oakland, the shoreline along the Bay Trail near the airport is popular. Fog usually burns off by late morning in summer, while fall often brings the clearest skies. Crissy Field and the Marina Green are good for helicopters and Fleet Week performances, and Oakland's Bay Farm Island shoreline gives close views of OAK arrivals.
San Francisco sky questions
Why do two planes land side by side at SFO?
SFO has two pairs of closely spaced parallel runways, and in good weather controllers can bring in arrivals on both runways at the same time. When fog lowers visibility, that becomes impossible, and the arrival rate drops sharply.
Why does fog cause so many delays at SFO?
Low clouds and fog prevent side-by-side visual approaches to SFO's closely spaced runways, roughly halving how many arrivals the airport can handle per hour. Flights are often held at their origin airports as a result.
What are the helicopters over the Golden Gate?
They are often sightseeing tour helicopters, news or police helicopters, or Coast Guard MH-65 helicopters from Air Station San Francisco.
Nearby cities
Planes over San Jose (42 mi) · Planes over Sacramento (75 mi) · Planes over Los Angeles (347 mi) · Planes over Riverside (386 mi)