United Just Opened a $700 Million Wing at Dulles Just for Itself

United Airlines is opening a brand-new concourse at Washington Dulles International today, a 14-gate facility that only United will use. Officials, including Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, marked the opening at an event on Monday, and the first passengers board Tuesday. The initial departure leaves at 10:15 a.m. for Chicago, followed by a 12:20 p.m. flight to Tokyo, a pairing that shows how United intends to use the space for both domestic and international service.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority estimated the project at about $700 million last summer, though a final budget has not been announced. Concourse E can handle up to seven large aircraft and 14 smaller ones at the same time. Inside, travelers get more device charging ports, new restaurants and shops, and what United says is the second-largest United Club in the country, behind only the one in Houston.

The opening is part of a bigger bet on Dulles as a hub. United currently runs about 250 daily flights from the airport and expects that to climb to roughly 300 with the new concourse. Company executive Andrew Nocella said facilities capable of handling at least 400 flights a day are planned, although he left the timing “to be determined.” In other words, this is a first step rather than the finished picture.

For passengers, the practical details are a little quirky. Travelers departing from Concourse E, including on international flights, ride the Aerotrain to and from the gates. International arrivals, however, still use the older people movers to reach customs, since those vehicles are staying in service for now. Anyone connecting through Dulles in the coming weeks should check which concourse their flight uses before they arrive.

Sources: Fox Baltimore, Aviation Week