Airport Noise

Wind speeds and patterns change throughout the year, resulting in pilots flying in and out of SFO to use alternate routes.  This is of course due to safety reasons, where most planes need to reach an altitude of at least 400 ft. and be safely airborne and before making any turns.  In times of low westerly winds, Runway 01, or a port departure, is used.  This runway faces Oakland, so if a plane is headed to Southern California, Las Vegas, or a destination in Arizona, the plane would need to make a 270-degree turn in order to face south).  In times of high westerly winds, Runway 28, or a Shoreline departure, is used.  This runway faces northwest towards Pacifica so planes heading south would fly towards the ocean along the Gap (a natural dip in the ridgeline between SFO and Pacifica) before turning left to fly south.  On west wind days, it's the planes that are headed to an eastern location that can cause noise problems in Brisbane.  A properly-flown Shoreline departure would have planes remaining on the east side of Highway 101 before turning right towards Oakland.  However, if this departure is poorly-flown, planes will fly too far northwest before turning right, and thus fly over Brisbane.  (If hearing runway numbers is confusing, just remember that SFO is 10 degrees to the right from all cardinal compass directions.  Therefore, Runway 01 is 10 degrees to the right of due North, Runway 10 is 10 degrees to the right of due East, or 100 degrees from due North, Runway 19 is 10 degrees to the right of due South, or 190 degrees from due North, and Runway 28 is 10 degrees to the right of due West, or 280 degrees from due North).  

Residents can know that work is being done by both the City Council and City Management to make sure Brisbane residents no longer need to put up with such loud overhead noise.  Community input is extremely important in affecting changes to flight patterns, as well.  Call tallies from community members calling in to the Aircraft Noise Abatement Office are reported to the Airport Community Roundtable during their public meetings.  So, it certainly makes a difference to report your complaints.  Don’t just sit idly by!  To report airport noise, note the specific date and time when you noticed the occurrence and call or e-mail the SFO Noise Abatement Office using the information below:

Airport Noise Complaint
Call: 650-821-4736
E-mail: sfo.noise@flysfo.com

On Wednesday, October 20th, Councilmember Richardson and City Management met with SFO Airport Director John Martin and Dave Ong from the SFO Airport Aircraft Noise Abatement Office.  The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the increase in overhead noise in Brisbane due to airplane traffic.  Currently, Brisbane has one permanent noise monitor, located at the Margaret Tank (directly south of the 400 block of Kings).  In an effort to get more useful data for proper analysis, the Airport is looking to install two more noise monitors and will be working closely with the Public Works department at the City to determine their prime and secure locations.  After those are installed and more data is collected, a follow-up meeting will take place in late November/early December on suggestions for fixing the overhead noise issue.  A presentation to the City Council will follow, most likely early next year, and will cover the analysis gained from the installation of the additional two noise monitors and future steps to make sure this no longer is an issue in town.  In the meantime, please do continue to report airplane-related noise complaints by calling the SFO Aircraft Noise Abatement Office.