San Francisco´s airport handeld almost 56 Mio passengers in 2017 and is the seventh-busiest in the United States. The commuting area of SFO/KSFO is very huge including major cities like Oakland or San Jose and even the Silicon Valley just south of the airport. Furthermore its a very popular tourist destination. Due to all these factors, the airport is served by most major carriers from all over the world and offers a nice mix for plane spotters. SFO is a major hub for United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, former Virgin America. Due to the wide range of international flights, heavy aircraft are a common sight.

There is also huge Chinese sub-group in San Francisco and it has the highest percentage of residents of Chinese descent of any major U.S. city. Therefore China is a very popular destination from an to  KSFO and served by all major carriers from the country.

The airport itself is situated in the San Francisco Bay: that’s not ideal for plane spotters. The issue is that it is surrounded by water on the north, east and south side. This makes spotting very limited as you can photograph from the western part only starting from noon.

There are two offical outside observation decks. One is atop Terminal 2, before security, and one is atop Terminal 3, after securtiy. Both are behind glass.

If you are using a location on airport property, this includes spots 3 and 4 (terrace excluded and not needed) you need a spotting permit for the time of your stay! Just fill out the form on the official airport website: LINK – however, even with this permit the local authorities sometimes send you away!

Written by Maximilian Kramer (@Flymaxiair) and Julian Mittnacht. Last change: September 2024 – Pictures for spot 7

Rating
Movements
Airline Variety
Photo Locations
Weather
Airport Information
Runways
01L/19R	2.332 m (7.650 ft)
01R/19L	2.637 m (8.650 ft)
10L/28R	3.618 m (11.870 ft)
10R/28L	3.469 m (11.381 ft)
Terminals
Terminal 1, Concourse B and C	Delta, Frontier, Southwest
Terminal 2, Concourse D	Alaska Airlines, American, Virgin America
Terminal 3, Concourse E and F	United Airlines Domestic
Intl. Terminal, Concourse A and G	All intl. flights and foreign carries. Furthermore following US-Carriers: JetBlue, SunCountry,
Spotting Information
Ladder	Not required at any location.
Car/Public Transport	Not needed as all spots are within the airport perimeter and reachable by public transport, hotel shuttles, airtrain amd last but not least by foot.
Restrooms	Within the terminals and the hotels south of the terminals.
Drinks/Food	There are restaurants spreaded around the hotel area south of the terminals.
Hotels	Lots of hotels in different price categories are south of the terminals
Season	SFO is an all year round destination. In summer you have better weather and longer days but more heat distorion as you mainly can shot ground traffic.
Security	The airport is very spotter friendly and don’t have any issues. If you are using a location on airport property, this includes spots 3-5 (terrace excluded) you need a spotting permit for the time of your stay! To get a photo permit for the date of your stay, just fill out the form on the official airport website. Please note that you have to fill out the form every time you go, as the permit given is only for the specific day you go.
Runway Usage
General infos	Usually most time of the year runways 01 and 28 are the active, also called the “west plan”. Heavies bound to Europe or Asia use RWY28 for their departure. 10 and 19 movements are very rare but in this case they “south-east plan” is active. Have a look at the two images below for a detailed description.
01L/19R	01L is used for deparutres only most of the time. 19R barely in use for arrivals.
01L/19R	01R is used for deparutres only most of the time. 19L barely in use  for arrivals.
01L/19R	Mostly 28R is used for arrivals and heavy departures. 10L barely in use for departures.
01L/19R	Mostly 28L is used for arrivals and heavy departures. 10R barely in use for departures.

     
(Pictures are in possession of flysfo.com)

	Spot #1 – Waterfront/Bayfront Park – 28L arrivals
WHERE	The most popular spotting location in SFO is the Bayfront Park and the Waterfront. Leave Highway 101 at exit ‘Millbrae Ave’ and follow Millbrae Av. Eastbound. At the traffic lights turn right into Old Bayshore Highway. After 500m the spot is located on the left side. You can also try to catch on of the shuttle buses to the Westin or Marriot hotel. By foot from the int. terminal you should be need approximate 30 minutes. There are about 10-15 free parking slots the rest is from Marriott hotel. Plenty of hotels are just next to the park. Address for navigation: 1820 Old Bayshore Highway, Millbrae, California, USA
WHAT	Best for landing 28L and taxiway F. Photograph single aisle aircraft are to small due to the extreme heat distortion so you should concentrate on the heavies. You can´t photograph 01L/R movements as the view is blocked by a fence along the border and not suitable for photoraphy.
TIME	Best light from noon till sunset, better pictures at tidal
MISC.	At the park itself there are some benches to relax and enough shadow. Restrooms in the hotel behind you. Due to high distance and the water, heat haze is a big problem here even in winter. There is a white flag installed that can be a bit disturbing (see Cathay sample below).
FOCAL LENGTH	400mm for A380.

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	Spot #2 – Westin Hotel – 28/01
WHERE	The spot is a room within the Westin Hotel. It is the same direction as above and on the opposite side of the bayfront park. Ask for a room in the eastern wing with a view northwards to the airport. Sadly you can´t open the windows. There is an open staircase in the northern wing of the hotel which might be use. Unfortunately we did not test it.
WHAT	Its the only good location for departures on RWY 01. Movements on 28 are possible from a room in the northern wing, facing east. But it is not really an option due to the heat and distance and it is better to go out to the waterfront as you are closer.
TIME	Good location to spend almost the whole day for 01 and it is easy to move to #1 in the evening.
MISC.	Everything you need is within the hotel.
FOCAL LENGTH	200-400mm

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	Spot #3 – International Parking Garages G – Ramp movements
WHERE	Follow the signs by car or use the AirTrain and follow the signs to the parking Garage G. The view is generally blocked by the AirTrain station roof. Only one spot at level G8 near the car ramp up to G9 can see the ramp. Update March 2024: Garage A the airport has covered the wire fence with screens. No longer able to take photos.
WHAT	Usually the northern garage G is the better choice as the sun is behind you. The action is limited here to the movements to and from the Gates G91,93,97,99 and a few remote parking stands. Check the airport website to see which airlines are located in concourse G but its mainly Star Alliance.
TIME	For the G gates it depends on the angle but almost all day long.
MISC.	Everything you need within the terminal. A photo permit is required for this location! For more information check the red security box under the “Spotting Information” section.
FOCAL LENGTH	20-200mm. Depends on what you photograph as many different situations are possible.

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	Spot #4 – AirTrain Station
WHERE	The location is at the AirTrain Station of the domestic terminal 2. Just get on the platform of the trains. There is an open staircase at each end of the station where you have a sight over the terminals to the runways and taxiways. You are outside and have no glass or anything else infront of you.
WHAT	North Side: this part isn`t that good anymore as a building is almost completly blocks the view of aircraft departing especially on RWY28L (United on the samples below). RWY28R is possible too but its more far away and there is more heat distortion. Furthermore the timeframe for taking is very short due to the limited sight. And last but not least aircraft parked on the B gates block your sight too! South Side:  you can photograph departures on RWY01 and aircraft on taxiway Alpha and Bravo (Alaska on the samples below).
TIME	North Side from noon for the runway. South side only in the late afternoon till sunset in the summer. Heat haze is a serious issue.
MISC.	Everything you need within the terminal. A photo permit is required for this location! For more information check the red security box under the “Spotting Information” section.
FOCAL LENGTH	200-400mm. Depends on what you photograph as many different situations are possible.

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	Spot #5 – Observation Deck Terminal 3/G – Ramp movements
WHERE	There is another outdoor terrace within Terminal 3, boarding area G, but it is after security check. Once inside go to the end and you will see an outdoor terrace. Unfortunately it is behind glass.
WHAT	You can photograph every arirplane reach and depart G wing and south of F wing.
TIME	Depends on the angle but usually in winter all time and in summer might be backlit in the evening.
MISC.	The terrace will be opened from 7:00 am to 11:30 pm every day. More infos on the official website
FOCAL LENGTH	50-100mm

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	Spot #6 – Fisherman´s Park – 28L arrivals
WHERE	Compared to the other locations, this small park is pretty far from the airport and best reachable by car. From the airports highway 101 use exit 419/Broadway and turn into the airport blvd. Drive all the way up along the water until you reach the Fisherman´s Park on your left hand side. You can park your car free of charge. There are some airport hotels next to the park so you might be able to catch a shuttle bus to get there if you don´t have a car.
WHAT	Arrivals on RWY 28L only.
TIME	Best light from noon till sunset.
MISC.	At the park itself there is nothing just some trees spending shadow. Restrooms in the hotels.
FOCAL LENGTH	300-500mm

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	Spot #7 – Sky Terrace – 10L/28R + 10R/28L + Ramp movements
WHERE	Located atop Terminal 2, the SkyTerrace offers a great vantage point of the busiest section of SFO, where all four runways intersect. The SkyTerrace is located before security in Terminal 2. Just follow the sign.
WHAT	10L/R-28L/R movements, taxiway, ramp.
TIME	Best light from noon till sunset.
MISC.	open to the general public on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. There is no cost to enter and you don’t need a ticket or boarding pass. Visitors will undergo a security check. Food and beverages are allowed but smoking is not permitted. Taking pictures is limited as the terrace is behind huge glass walls which are mostly dirty and not parallel to the taxiway/runway – so spotting from here is really tough!
FOCAL LENGTH	100-400mm

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