San Francisco Runway 1R Closed for 6-Month Overhaul

Residents near San Francisco International Airport (KSFO) will see a significant increase in overhead flights for the next six months as officials begin a major repaving project on one of the facility’s busiest runways.

Runway 1 Right was closed March 30 and is expected to remain out of service until October for surface repairs and lighting upgrades. During the closure, air traffic will be diverted to Runways 28L and 28R.

KSFO officials took a proactive approach to address anticipated noise complaints before the start of the six-month runway project, according to public information officer Doug Yakel. Yakel said the airport, which has a NOTAM warning pilots that it is a noise-sensitive field, sent a postcard mailer (below) to “about 16,000 residents in the path of Runways 28L/R” to assure them that the increase in noise from departing traffic is temporary.

About the Project

Runway 1 Right measures 8,650 feet with a displaced threshold of 560 feet. During the project Runway 1L will be used as an additional taxiway but won’t be available for takeoffs and landings.

Until the project is completed, all air traffic will be using Runway 28L, measuring 11,381 feet by 200 feet, and Runway 28/R (11,870 by 200). Both runways are used on breezy days when winds are coming off the Pacific Ocean.

While the runways’ close proximity prohibits simultaneous parallel approaches, an FAA spokesperson noted that staggered, side-by-side approaches to Runways 28L and 28R are permitted during clear weather. This configuration is allowed when one aircraft is lined up on each runway with sufficient separation, provided both pilots maintain visual contact with the other aircraft.

The airlines are expected to build extra time into their schedules due to traffic congestion.

According to the KSFO website, the total construction cost is expected to be about $180 million, of which $92.1 million will come from the FAA.

History of KSFO

The airport’s origins date back to March 1927 when the city and county of San Francisco leased 150 acres of cow pasture from the Mills Estate for what was supposed to be an experimental and, therefore, temporary airport project. The facility, first known as Mills Field Municipal Airport of San Francisco, opened in May 1927.

When it became apparent that aviation was here to stay, San Francisco bought the property outright and expanded the footprint to more than 1,000 acres. In 1931 the airport was renamed after the city.

The earliest airlines to utilize it included United and Western Air Express. The airport became “international” after World War II when aviation travel expanded and the Far East and Europe opened up.

Today KSFO is the second-busiest in California behind Los Angeles International Airport (KLAX).