FAA tightens landing rules at SFO

The FAA has ordered that aircraft may no longer perform side‑by‑side approaches to San Francisco’s parallel east–west runways in clear weather and is requiring staggered approaches with one aircraft offset on parallel runs, according to the agency’s notice reported by Reuters. (usnews.com) The agency said the combination of the new approach restriction and the runway project will reduce SFO’s maximum arrival rate from 54 flights per hour to 36 flights per hour. (usnews.com) San Francisco International closed Runway 1R on March 30, 2026 for a six‑month repaving and taxiway improvement project scheduled to reopen on October 2, 2026. (sanfranciscobayairport.com) The runway project carries an expected construction price tag of $180 million, with $92.1 million of that funding coming from the FAA via the airport’s announcement. (sanfranciscobayairport.com) SFO said all arrivals and departures will operate on Runways 28L and 28R during the closure while Runway 1L will be used as an additional taxiway, and the airport projects fewer than 15% of flights will be delayed by an average of less than 30 minutes with peak risk windows around 9:00–10:00 a.m. and 9:00–10:00 p.m. local time. (sanfranciscobayairport.com) SFO handled almost 55 million passengers and more than 400,000 aircraft movements last year across its two sets of parallel runways (10L/28R + 10R/28L and 1R/19L + 1L/19R), underscoring the operational impact of losing one runway for six months. (simpleflying.com) United Airlines accounts for roughly half of passenger traffic at SFO while Alaska Airlines represents about 10% of traffic, and the FAA said it is exploring ways to safely raise the arrival rate but does not plan to lift the new approach restrictions after the repaving is complete. (usnews.com)