Airport Overview
San Francisco International Airport (KSFO) sits about 13 miles south of downtown San Francisco on the Bay shoreline at 13 ft MSL, owned and operated by the City and County of San Francisco. It is one of the busiest commercial airports in the US, with 480,000+ annual operations. For private aviation it functions as a full-service international gateway: a single GA FBO, a 24/7 CBP Federal Inspection Station, and four runways capable of any aircraft type.
Runway Capability
SFO has four asphalt runways. The 10/28 pair runs 11,870 ft (10L/28R) and 11,381 ft (10R/28L); the crossing 1/19 pair runs 8,648 ft (1R/19L) and 7,650 ft (1L/19R). All runways have ILS and RNAV (GPS) approaches. There are no weight, wingspan, or noise restrictions limiting business jets — the field is designed for widebodies, so light jets through ultra-long-range heavies operate with ample margin at sea level.
FBO & Customs
Signature Flight Support is the only GA FBO at SFO, located at 1052 North Access Road and open around the clock. It offers Jet-A, VIP lounges, crew rest, and large hangars sized for heavy jets. International arrivals clear customs at SFO's full CBP Federal Inspection Station; clearance is coordinated through Signature. With only one FBO, ramp and hangar space can be tight during peak periods, so advance arrangements are recommended.
Charter Considerations
SFO carries among the highest landing and fuel fees in the United States, and airline congestion can slow GA handling. As a result most Bay Area charter operators default to Oakland (KOAK), San Jose (KSJC), Hayward (KHWD), or San Carlos (KSQL), which offer lower costs, faster turns, and lighter traffic. SFO makes sense when you need international customs at a single stop, the most central access to San Francisco proper, or a runway and FBO that handle the largest cabins.
Weather & Operations
Fog is SFO's signature challenge. The Pacific marine layer regularly lowers visibility and ceilings, especially on summer mornings and evenings (June through August). Because the parallel runways sit only ~750 ft apart, low visibility forces offset/single-stream arrival procedures that can halve arrival capacity and produce multi-hour delays. Rain falls November through March; there is no snow or de-icing requirement. Build schedule buffer into fog-season itineraries.
Silicon Valley & Regional Context
SFO is well placed for San Francisco, Palo Alto, and Menlo Park. For Cupertino, Sunnyvale, and central Silicon Valley, San Jose (KSJC) is closer; for the East Bay and Fremont, Hayward (KHWD) or Oakland (KOAK) are more efficient. Peak demand at SFO tracks major tech events (Dreamforce, Google I/O, Apple WWDC), holiday travel, and the summer fog-delay season. California has more registered aircraft than any other state, and the Bay Area offers numerous reliever fields within minutes of SFO.