Originally Posted by
Fanjet
just down the road, AA just opened-up a brand new 14-gate terminal at DCA...I think what's going to happen at IAD is just incremental build-outs
All a matter of scale. DCA hadn't seen major construction since the Pelli terminal opened in 1997, then saw major traffic increases when US/AA began routing connecting passengers through -- greater strain on facilities but also more passenger revenue to pay for expansions. A 14-gate regional jet concourse isn't anywhere as large as a 44-gate international concourse with immigration facilities.
IAD overspent in the mid 2000s with Concourses A/B expansion, AeroTrain, and a new runway, then had to put the brakes on expansion.
(As for the Virginia coastal review, yes, Fairfax is considered a coastal county because it borders the tidal Potomac.)