Originally Posted by
cfischer
A lot of bad choices here. I find immigration, bags and security at IAD ‘main’ much much faster than mid-field. TSA is usually a huge mess and no pre-check. If your flight is soon then there is also likely neither GE nor pre-check and I’d honestly rather not deal with that in addition to the mid-field mess.
IAD continues to be a mess (especially with mid-field customs now closed for the morning international arrivals). That being said, when mid-field is open I find its baggage claim to be far quicker than main terminal. The last couple of times I've terminated at Dulles off an international flight, the bags have taken 45+ minutes to come out at the main terminal. My recent experiences at mid-field have always been much quicker (despite the terrible security setup there). YMMV.
I feel really bad for the early morning international arrivals who are connecting onto the 8am domestic bank - as they hardly have any time to retrieve/recheck their bags at the main terminal and then make it all the way back to the C/D gates.
-FlyerBeek