Washington Dulles International Airport facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Washington Dulles International Airport
IATA: IAD ICAO: KIAD FAA LID: IAD WMO: 72403
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner/Operator	Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
Serves	Washington metropolitan area
Location	Dulles, Virginia, U.S.
Opened	November 17, 1962 (1962-11-17)
Hub for	United Airlines
Elevation AMSL	313 ft / 95 m
Coordinates	38°56′40″N 077°27′21″W / 38.94444°N 77.45583°W / 38.94444; -77.45583
Website	flydulles.com
Map
IAD Location in Northern Virginia Show map of Northern Virginia IAD Location in Virginia Show map of Virginia IAD Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Runway
Runway Length Surface ft m 1L/19R 9,400 2,865 Concrete 1C/19C 11,500 3,505 Concrete 1R/19L 11,500 3,505 Concrete 12/30 10,501 3,201 Concrete 12R/30L 10,500 3,200 Planned
Statistics (2018)
Aircraft operations 354,281 Total passengers 36,060,709 5.1%
Source: Federal Aviation Administration, Passenger traffic

Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) is a large public airport located in Dulles, Virginia. It is about 26 miles (42 km) west of Washington, D.C.. This airport helps people travel to and from the wider Washington metropolitan area, which includes Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Northern Virginia.

The airport is named after John Foster Dulles. He was an important person who served as the United States Secretary of State (a top diplomat) under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The main building at Dulles Airport is famous for its unique design, created by Eero Saarinen. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority manages the airport. Dulles Airport is very big, covering an area of 11,830 acres (47.9 km²). It sits on the edge of Fairfax County and Loudoun County in Virginia.

Dulles Airport is located between the communities of Chantilly and Dulles. It is the largest and busiest airport in the Washington area. Each year, over 23 million passengers use Dulles. More than 60,000 people fly out of Dulles daily to over 125 places around the world. It is the busiest airport in both Virginia and the Baltimore-Washington area.

After World War II, more and more people started flying, and the Washington area grew a lot. Because of this, the United States Congress passed the Washington Airport Act in 1950. This law provided money to build a second airport. President Dwight D. Eisenhower chose the location for Dulles Airport in 1958.

Airlines at Dulles: Who Flies Here?

Dulles Airport is a major hub for many airlines, connecting travelers to places all over the world.

Top Airlines by Passengers

The table below shows which airlines carried the most passengers at Dulles between October 2010 and September 2011.

All Airlines Flying from Dulles

Many different airlines operate flights from Washington Dulles International Airport.

Dulles in Movies and TV Shows

Dulles Airport has been featured in many movies and television shows, especially those set in Washington D.C.

• One of the first movies to show Dulles was Seven Days in May in 1964.
• The 1983 comedy D.C. Cab, starring Mr. T, showed scenes outside the main terminal.
• The action movie Die Hard 2: Die Harder takes place mostly at Dulles. The story is about terrorists taking over the airport's control tower and communication systems. However, the movie was not actually filmed at Dulles. Other airports like Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) were used instead.
• Part of the thriller The Package (with Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones) was set at Dulles, but filmed at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago.
• Parts of the sequels to the disaster film Airport were filmed at Dulles. These include Airport 1975, Airport '77, and The Concorde ... Airport '79.
• Dulles was used to represent a New York City airport in the 1999 comedy Forces of Nature.
• The airport also appears in the movie Body of Lies. In one scene, Leonardo DiCaprio pretends to be at "Dubai International" on the phone, but you can see the unique roof and windows of the Dulles departures area behind him.
• The terminal can also be seen in the movie In The Line of Fire starring Clint Eastwood.
• Dulles is also used in many episodes of the TV series The X-Files.

Dulles airport's terminal exterior

Images for kids

• 

  Dulles Airport in 1970

• 

  First Lady Pat Nixon welcomed the first Boeing 747 at Dulles on January 15, 1970.

• 

  Main Terminal Station of Aerotrain

• 

  A mobile lounge

• 

  The terminal ceiling is suspended in a catenary curve above the luggage check-in area.

• 

  Concourse A & B during the night

• 

  The interior of Concourse C and D, where United Airlines's hub operation is based.

• 

  Air traffic control tower viewed through a skylight in the main terminal.

• 

  Control Tower view of IAD in 1961.

See also

In Spanish: Aeropuerto Internacional de Washington-Dulles para niños