The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing arrival capacity at San Francisco International Airport as construction and new safety rules take effect, a move expected to increase flight delays.
The FAA said the measure will lower maximum arrival rates from 54 flights per hour to 36 during a major runway project. The FAA said the runway project and safety measures are separate actions, each reducing arrival capacity by nine flights per hour.
San Francisco International Airport said the changes will lead to more delays, with about a quarter of arriving flights expected to experience delays of at least 30 minutes, up from a prior estimate of roughly 15%.
The airport’s runway repaving project will put its two north-south runways out of service for approximately six months, further limiting capacity at one of the nation’s busiest airports.
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The FAA is also prohibiting side-by-side approaches to the airport’s parallel east-west runways, including in clear weather, and instead requiring “staggered approaches, with one aircraft offset from the aircraft on the parallel runway.”
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The FAA does not plan to lift the restrictions once the runway repaving is completed.
United Airlines, which accounts for about half of passenger traffic at San Francisco, said the planned runway construction may cause flight delays. Alaska Airlines is the airport’s second-largest carrier, with about 10% of passenger traffic.
The FAA said it had not allowed side-by-side approaches in bad weather and is exploring ways to safely increase arrival rates while reducing risks tied to visual separation.
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The agency said the change followed a routine review that found the approaches did not meet aircraft separation standards and is specific to San Francisco.
The changes come as the agency tightens broader aviation safety rules. Earlier this month, the FAA said it would require stricter helicopter safety measures and suspend the use of visual separation between airplanes and helicopters near major airports.
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The actions follow a January 2025 mid-air collision between an American Airlines regional jet and an Army helicopter that killed 67 people. The FAA also cited two recent incidents, including a near miss involving an American Airlines flight and a police helicopter near San Antonio airport.
Reuters contributed to this report.
