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Take a first glance at what the nearly half-a-billion-dollar expansion at Dulles International Airport in Virginia looks like.
Steel beams are being welded together in what will become a 435,000-square-foot concourse containing 14 gates and an enormous customer lounge for United Airlines passengers.
The expansion comes just as the airport is already testing its limits.
“The Sunday after Thanksgiving wasn’t just a record, it was a record by a mile,” said United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby about the recent record-breaking holiday travel and the need to expand services at Dulles.
“Having a facility with 14 more international capable gates is going to let us double the international service out of here,” he added.
The new “E” concourse is expected to be completed in late 2026. It was funded jointly through a partnership with United and Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. It was also funded with grants from the state and federal government through the Biden administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for airport improvement projects.
The authority’s CEO Jack Potter said this expansion is just the beginning of a $7 billion investment package slated to be put in place over the next 15 years.
“United Airlines’ plan is to grow its passengers here at Dulles by 30% over the next five years,” Potter said. “Think of all the people it’s going to take to handle just those customers, the concessionaires … but also think about the construction.”
More than 28,000 people currently work at Dulles. The added construction and expected business coming through the airport and surrounding industry is generally expected to bring more economic development to Northern Virginia.
“That’s going to create thousands of jobs here at Dulles, and there are going to be many more passengers,” Potter said. “We’re excited about the contribution that’s going to make to the local economy here.”