San Francisco Bay Tour

The "Bay Tour" as the local pilots call it, is one of the great flights of the world. If you can convince the Bay Approach controllers that you know what you are doing, they'll let you fly up the Bayshore freeway (US 101) past San Francisco International Airport, or sometimes right over the top of it, to the City by the Bay, the Golden Gate bridge, the Bay Bridge, Angel Island, Sausalito etc.

Since a big part of the flight will be through the SFO Class B airspace, you do need to be sharp on the radio, know the landmarks, and fly where ATC tells you to fly. Otherwise you may hear the dreaded: "Cessna 1234, fly heading 270." followed a few minutes later by "Cessna 1234, leaving Class Bravo, radar services terminated, squawk VFR." In other words, if you cause them hassle, they point you at Japan and get you out of Class B, then leave you on your own. So be good, listen before speaking on the radio, follow instructions to the letter, maintain altitude to better than 50', and things will be fine. If you haven't done it before, find a CFI and have him or her show you. I'd be delighted to help - see Goodflying.com

If you are up to it, you will be rewarded with magnificent views of the Bay, San Francisco, the bridges, and airliners landing and taking off from SFO, Oakland and San Jose, with maybe an Orion or Hercules at Moffett Field. You can fly back via the East Bay foothills, or you can retrace your steps via highway 101. I like either way.

You'll get a great view of San Francisco International Airport

Tiburon


Angel Island


San Francisco and the Bay Bridge


Downtown San Francisco

Coit Tower


Candlestick Park, ...aka, 3Com Park!


San Francisco at sunset, looking across the Bay Bridge towards Oakland.