17.4.08

F I R S TP R E V747NEXTLAST
SFO International Airport

I think every resident of the Bay Area can agree with Herb Caen's quote above. No matter what business trip or vacation you're finishing, it's always nice to board a homebound plane for San Francisco. Quite often when the plane finally touches down and the flight attendant welcomes you to San Francisco, a quiet cheer will rise up in the plane.

San Francisco International Airport is located 12 miles south of downtown. It was opened in 1927, having been built on an old cow pasture, and was originally named Mills Field Municipal Airport. In 1935 Pan American World Airways used it as the terminal for its China Clipper flying boat service across the Pacific Ocean, that service was later moved to Treasure Island in the middle of the San Francisco Bay. Shown above is SFO's International Terminal designed by Craig W. Hartman and opened in December 2000, it is the largest international terminal in North America. While it is not uncommon to experience significant delays due to fog, in its 81 years there has never been an injury or death from a flight taking from, or landing at, SFO.

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