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San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is located in San Mateo County, California, about 12 miles (19 km) southeast of San Francisco. It is the primary international airport serving the San Francisco Bay Area and is the second busiest airport in California after Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). SFO offers nonstop flights to various destinations worldwide and is a hub for major airlines such as United Airlines and Alaska Airlines. The airport features four terminals with seven concourses, providing a range of dining, shopping, and art experiences for travellers. Transportation options to and from the airport include the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), Lyft, Uber, taxis, and chartered services.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | San Francisco International Airport |
| IATA | SFO |
| ICAO | KSFO |
| FAA LID | SFO |
| Location | San Mateo County, California |
| Distance from San Francisco | 12 miles |
| Ranking in California | Second-busiest airport |
| Ranking in the US | 13th-busiest airport |
| Ranking in the world | 29th-busiest airport |
| Hub for | United Airlines, Alaska Airlines |
| Services | Nonstop flights to Asia, South Pacific, Europe, Canada, Mexico, and the US |
| World-class facilities, shopping, dining | |
| Rental Car Center | |
| AirTrain | |
| #SFO FREE WIFI | |
| Baggage storage | |
| Multi-Day Reserved parking |
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What You'll Learn
Location and transport connections
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is located in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County, approximately 12 miles (19 km) southeast of San Francisco. The airport has a San Francisco mailing address and ZIP code.
SFO is easily accessible by road, with driving directions and printable maps available on its website. The airport also has a Rental Car Center, allowing travellers to conveniently pick up and drop off rental cars.
For those travelling by public transport, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) offers a convenient way to get to and from the airport. The SFO station has paper ticket fare charts, and BART's fare structure is based on a mileage-based formula. Weekly or monthly passes are not available, and there is an additional 50-cent charge per trip. The first train departing SFO is at 4:58 am, and the last train is at midnight. To get to downtown San Francisco, passengers can board a Yellow Line (San Francisco/Antioch) or Red Line (San Francisco/Richmond) train to one of the four downtown San Francisco BART stations. From there, it's a short walk or cab ride to most hotels and the Moscone Convention Center.
Passengers can also take a Yellow or Red Line train to Downtown Oakland, alighting at the 12th St/City Center Station. From other areas, passengers may need to transfer to an SFO-bound train. BART also offers inexpensive multi-day parking at many stations, which can be reserved online.
Within the airport, passengers can use AirTrain, a fully automated people mover, to transfer between terminals. AirTrain operates on two lines: the Red Line, which connects all terminals, terminal garages, and the BART Station; and the Blue Line, which connects the same, as well as the Rental Car Center. AirTrain operates 24 hours a day.
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History and previous names
San Francisco International Airport (IATA: SFO, ICAO: KSFO, FAA LID: SFO) is the primary international airport for the San Francisco Bay Area in California. It is the largest airport in the Bay Area and the second-busiest in California, after Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
The history of the airport can be traced back to 1927, when the City and County of San Francisco leased 150 acres of land on what was then a cow pasture from the Mills Estate, with an agreement made with Ogden L. Mills, who oversaw the large tracts of property originally acquired by his grandfather, the banker Darius O. Mills. The airport was officially named the Mills Field Municipal Airport of San Francisco. In 1930, the city purchased the property and surrounding areas, expanding the site to 1,112 acres. The airport's name was officially changed to San Francisco Airport in 1931, and "'International'" was added at the end of World War II as overseas service rapidly expanded. The entrance of British Commonwealth Pacific Airlines and Philippine Airlines in 1947 also contributed to the addition of "International" to the airport's name.
The earliest scheduled carriers at the airport included Western Air Express, Maddux Air Lines, and Century Pacific Lines. United Airlines, which began operating at the airport in 1934, quickly became the key carrier, with Douglas DC-3 service to Los Angeles and New York beginning in January 1937. In 1933, Pacific Seaboard Air Lines flew between San Francisco and Los Angeles, but later moved all its operations to the eastern U.S. and renamed itself Chicago and Southern Air Lines (C&S). During World War II, the airport served as a Coast Guard base and Army Air Corps training and staging base, and was called Naval Auxiliary Air Facility Mills Field and Coast Guard Air Station, San Francisco.
In the late 1950s, SFO became a profitable operation and continued to expand, with the construction of a new terminal, named the "Central Terminal", which was dedicated in 1954. The first Hilton Airport Hotel opened at San Francisco International in 1962. In 1968, Pacific Air Lines merged with Bonanza Air Lines and West Coast Airlines to form Air West, which was headquartered at SFO. By the late 1970s, Air West had been acquired by Howard Hughes and renamed Hughes Airwest, operating an all-jet fleet.
In the early 2000s, the airport completed its most recent expansion, adding a dedicated International Terminal and a 6-mile automated shuttle train system, as well as extending the BART train system to the airport.
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Airlines and destinations
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is the primary airport for the San Francisco Bay Area in California. It is the largest airport in the Bay Area and the second-busiest in California, after Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
SFO is a hub for United Airlines, which has offered flights to and from the airport since 1934. The airline suffered an incident in 1998 when one of its flights was forced to shut down an engine after takeoff, nearly colliding with San Bruno Mountain. United Airlines Flight 93, destined for San Francisco, was also one of the four planes hijacked during the September 11 attacks in 2001.
In addition to United, several other airlines have operated at SFO. These include Pacific Seaboard Air Lines, which flew between San Francisco and Los Angeles in 1933, and Western Air Express, Maddux Air Lines, and Century Pacific Lines, which were among the earliest scheduled carriers at the airport. Delta Air Lines also inherited international routes to Jamaica and Venezuela from Chicago and Southern Air Lines (C&S) in 1953.
Today, SFO offers nonstop flights to Asia, the South Pacific, Europe, Canada, Mexico, and within the US. The airport has a total of 29 gates across two boarding areas in its International Terminal, which is the largest in North America. SFO also became the base of operations for Virgin America, offering service to over 20 destinations.
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Facilities and amenities
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is a large airport with a range of facilities and amenities for travellers. The airport offers nonstop flights to Asia, South Pacific, Europe, Canada, Mexico, and within the US, and is a hub for United Airlines and Alaska Airlines.
SFO has a convenient, central Rental Car Center, where travellers can pick up and drop off rental cars. The airport also has its own BART station, with direct services to downtown San Francisco and Oakland on the Yellow and Red lines. The airport offers inexpensive multi-day parking at many stations, with easy online reservations.
SFO provides free Wi-Fi for travellers, with two network options: #SFO FREE WIFI and #SFO FREE 5GHZ WIFI. There is also a range of shops and restaurants, with some offering military discounts. Paging services are available, and lost and found departments can assist with lost items. Baggage assistance is offered to all departing guests, and baggage storage is available at the Airport Travel Agency near the entrance to Gates G1-G14.
The airport has a contactless parking system, with the option to prepay online and receive a QR code for garage entry and exit. The Grand Hyatt hotel is located at the entrance to the airport and can be accessed from all terminals via AirTrain or by road. There are also other hotels in different price ranges located near the airport.
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Military personnel access
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is the primary airport for the San Francisco Bay Area in California. It is the largest airport in the Bay Area and the second-busiest in California, ranking 13th in the US and 29th in the world by passenger traffic in 2023. The airport offers nonstop flights to Asia, South Pacific, Europe, Canada, Mexico, and within the US.
The San Francisco International Airport has a USO Lounge, which is located in Harvey Milk Terminal 1 on the Mezzanine Level. The USO, or United Services Organization, is a non-profit organization that was created in 1941 and chartered by Congress. Its mission is to provide morale, welfare, and services to US military personnel and their families. The USO Lounge at SFO is open daily from 7:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. and offers a range of amenities, including:
- Gaming Lounge
- Coffee, tea, and other beverages
- Pre-packaged snacks and meals (when available)
- To-go snack packs
- Dedicated family room
- Children's games, books, and activities
- Family TV/Movie channels
- Free maps, brochures, and transportation schedules
- Information on shops and restaurants that provide military discounts
The USO center at SFO welcomes over 25,000 military personnel annually and has been supporting troops with permanent and mobile facilities for over 82 years. In addition to the services provided at the airport, the USO also supports military unit homecomings and deployments, and offers virtual programming for troops and military families.
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Frequently asked questions
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is located in San Mateo County, California.
You can get to SFO by the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), Lyft/Uber, Taxi, Chartered Services, or by driving and parking at the airport or a nearby offsite parking lot.
San Francisco International Airport provides onsite parking, but availability depends on airport traffic. There are also offsite parking lots close to the airport.
San Francisco International Airport has four terminals with seven concourses. The terminals are designated as Terminals 1-3 and the International Terminal.
SFO offers shopping, dining, and art experiences, including a museum in collaboration with San Francisco's Fine Arts Museums.
