Summary
- SFO has the largest base-isolated building in the world, built to withstand earthquakes up to a Richter Magnitude 8.
- The airport has a runway layout that allows for parallel take-offs and landings.
- Harvey Milk Terminal 1 at SFO is the first US terminal to implement an Independent Carrier System for baggage handling.
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is the second-busiest airport in the state of California, behind Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The airport has been operational for over 90 years and has undergone significant renovations. This evolution has resulted in a fascinating history and innovative infrastructure as the facility has grown to meet travel demand.
Here are some highlights of facts you may not know about SFO.
1 The largest base-isolated building in the world
The San Francisco Bay Area lies along the San Andreas Fault, making the region especially vulnerable to significant earthquakes. When it came time to build a new terminal at SFO to accommodate increasing international travel, safeguarding against seismic activity was top-of-mind.
In 1995, SFO broke ground on its new International Terminal. At the time, the $2.6 billion project was the largest construction project in North America at 1.8 million square feet. According to the American Institute of Steel Construction, the facility was built with 267 friction pendulum seismic isolators at the base of the building columns.
The structure is glass and aluminum clad, with glass panels that are 700 feet long and 80 feet tall. The seismic isolation measures allow the building to withstand a Richter Magnitude 8 earthquake. The International Terminal opened for service in December 2000.
2 Parallel take-offs and landings
SFO is one of several airports in the United States with a runway layout that allows for parallel take-offs and landings. The airfield features two parallel runways oriented in an east-west direction intersected by two additional runways oriented north-to-south. According to SFO, the standard runway flow configuration—the West Plan—is utilized about 80% of the time. Runways 28L and 28R are the primary arrival runways, and 1L and 1R are the primary departure runways.
When weather conditions provide good visibility, aircraft can land side-by-side on runways 28L and 28R with adequate space between the next set of arrivals to permit parallel departures. Interestingly, runways 28L and 28R are only 748.9 feet apart, so parallel take-offs and landings are not approved for instrument flight conditions.
In conditions of reduced visibility, aircraft arrive using only one runway.
Please take a look at our review of US airports where you can catch simultaneous take-offs and landings.
3 Harvey Milk Terminal 1 was the first US terminal to implement an Independent Carrier System
SFO’s Terminal 1 was originally constructed in the early 1960s but has recently undergone significant renovation. As part of the changes to the terminal, SFO instituted a new, tote-based Independent Carrier System (ICS), making Harvey Milk Terminal 1 the first in the United States to implement such a system.
Each piece of baggage is individually placed into a tote carrier when it is received at the check-in area, and it remains in its carrier all the way to its destination aircraft. This system enhances airlines’ ability to track passenger luggage accurately. Because the tote carriers are a uniform shape and size, ICS reduces the potential for system jams that often occur in the conventional baggage handling system in which wheels and straps can get caught on conveyor belts.
Additionally, the conventional model of baggage handling consists of one-directional routing. In contrast, the ICS model can facilitate transfers to the arrival claim area or other destinations as the empty tote heads back to the check-in area.
4 Helicopter service
SFO was once home to the San Francisco and Oakland Helicopter Airlines operation, known as SFO Helicopter Airlines. The airline began serving passengers in 1961, using SFO as its hub. In 1962, the airline was also awarded a contract to carry US mail.
SFO Helicopter Airlines flew from the airport to downtown San Francisco and Oakland, as well as Oakland International Airport and a heliport close to the Berkeley Marina. In the late 1960s, there were also routes to the San Francisco Ferry Building and Marin.
The airline operated Sikorsky turbine engine helicopters, which could accommodate 10 passengers. Sightseeing tours were offered on weekends during the summer and on holidays. The fare was $4.50 for adults and $3.50 for children, making it an economical option for families to get an aerial view of attractions like Fisherman’s Wharf. At the height of its operations, SFO Helicopter Airlines was running about 68 flights per day.
Unfortunately, the airline experienced financial difficulty and ceased operations in 1985.
5 Health and wellbeing at Harvey Milk Terminal 1 Boarding Area B
According to an SFO news release, Harvey Milk Terminal 1 Boarding Area B was the first airport terminal in the world to achieve WELL certification, a building standard developed by the International WELL Building Institute that includes over 100 features related to enhancing human health and wellbeing.
The standard is intended to serve as a method for organizations to intentionally develop buildings that factor in considerations such as air quality and energy efficiency when designing the built environment.
Harvey Milk Terminal 1 Boarding Area B incorporated numerous features in its construction that helped the building reach the WELL certification. Some of these included acoustic management through sound-reducing surfaces to cut down on noise, radiant heating and cooling that complements displacement ventilation for energy efficiency, and an efficient outdoor air filtration system to reduce pollutants and odors coming inside the building. The latter effort is verified through third-party air quality testing.
Sources: AISC; SFO-International Terminal News Release; SFO; SFO Terminal 1 Redevelopment; SFO- WELL Certification News Release
