President Donald Trump previously slammed a United Airlines hub as a “terrible airport.” Changes have been looming at the airport. In December, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) criticized the “jet fuel smell in the concourses,” in addition to the “paltry” number of gates in the main terminal.
Now, Trump, alongside Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby, has announced a staggering $22 billion reconstruction of Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) at the White House. The Virginia airport is the main international hub that serves Washington, D.C.
Most of the project will be funded by municipal bonds through the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) and United Airlines, a White House official confirmed to TheTravel.
DOT Stays Quiet On Whether Ticket Prices Will Increase To Fund Makeover
President Donald Trump announced the reconstruction at the White House, joined by Duffy and Kirby. A White House official told TheTravel that it doesn’t expect the project to have a significant impact on fares. The plan, which was first confirmed in May, will include four new concourses.
“We’re going to rebuild Dulles,” Duffy said at a Washington conference in May, adding that the project would cost roughly $22 billion.
Before Duffy’s comments, the president previously criticized the airport, stating that the government will step in to rebuild it.
“We’re also going to rebuild Dulles Airport because it’s not a good airport. It should be a great airport, and it’s not a good airport at all. It’s a terrible airport,” Trump said at the White House last December.
John E. “Jack” Potter, the head of the MWAA, said that the remodel will not be federally funded.
“This is not requiring federal dollars. This is going to be airport-generated dollars, airline contributions, which is phenomenal,” Potter said at the White House on July 29.
Trump hinted that the project will take two years to complete and will cause “very little” disruption to flight operations at the airport. However, it remains unclear what impact the project could have on ticket prices.
TheTravel asked the DOT and United Airlines about this, and both referred to separate press releases that didn’t answer that looming question.
Information On Washington Dulles Planned $20+ Billion Makeover
United’s announcement states that the reconstruction is backed by “a capital investment program of more than $20 billion,” and it included renderings of what the new hub would look like.
The revamped airport is set to have over 5 million square feet of new or renovated space and a larger main terminal. It also touts that travelers will be able to walk more easily to their gates and that the project will add a new train service to replace Dulles’ old mobile lounges.
DOT highlighted eight changes to the airport, which will include a new baggage handling system and a new United Polaris Lounge that it states will be among the “largest” in the world:
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Enhancing entry into the airport with close-in parking facilities, state-of-the-art check-in areas and more efficient security screening for an easier start to the journey |
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Building new and modernized concourses and replacing the current dismal Concourses C and D with facilities that will support more and larger aircraft to fly to more destinations around the world |
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Adding additional gates that will give travelers more spacious, comfortable seating areas, dedicated work areas, and amenities in bright, expansive settings |
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New AeroTrain connections and enhanced walkability, including a central walking tunnel, will make it easier for travelers to move between the terminal, concourses and gates to allow replacement of mobile lounges |
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Improving walkability, including with a stunning new central passenger connection between concourses |
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Creating a walkable path to a new, large U.S. Customs facility and improvements designed to deliver an international arrival experience second to none |
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Constructing a state-of-the-art baggage handling system so travelers will get their luggage faster |
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Adding additional concessions and airport lounges, including more United Club space and plans for one of the largest United Polaris Lounges in the world. |
Duffy called the mobile lounges “absurd” in a statement, adding that the remodeled airport will be “state-of-the-art.”
“Say goodbye to those stale concourses, drab interior, endless walkways, and those absurd mobile lounges, and say hello to a state-of-the-art facility that will inspire millions of flyers for generations to come,” the Transportation Secretary said in a statement.
This comes on the heels of incidents involving the airport’s mobile lounges.
Washington Dulles’ Mobile Lounges Had Two Accidents Recently
In November, 18 people were hospitalized following a mobile lounge crashing into a part of Concourse D at the airport. One traveler told News4 at the time that he “lost consciousness” and suffered a concussion.
Authorities said that everyone injured had non-life-threatening injuries.
Just days later, a mobile lounge was involved in another collision at the airport, that time with an “airline tug,” according to the MWAA. United Airlines said an employee had minor injuries.
The remodel isn’t just to improve passenger transport within the airport, however. Trump said in December that the goal of the makeover is to make it “something really spectacular.”
“We’re going to turn that around, and we’re going to make Dulles Airport — serving Washington and Virginia, Maryland, etc. — we’re gonna make that into something really spectacular. We have an amazing plan for it,” President Trump added.
The national capital region has two other airports besides Dulles: Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI).
While it remains unclear how much flight operations will be affected or whether travelers can expect more expensive tickets, the changes at the airport are addressing long-standing issues at one of United’s largest hubs.
