Comments 51 to 57 of 57
Fees and customs info (March 2008)
I called Signature in late March 2008, and had the following fees quoted for a single-engine piston (PA-28):
$8 landing fee
$18.19/night parking
$28 handling fee, waived with purchase of 7 gal fuel
Customs will meet Canadian planes at the Signature FBO, and there is no extra charge. Their number is (703) 661-7100.
Finally, Signature's radio frequency (for when you're taxiing in) is 131.87 MHz.
Ground transportation
A taxi into DC should cost around $55-60. Here's a web site to estimate fares for specific destinations from DC to Dulles (the other way around you have to use Washington Flyer, which may charge differently):
http://citizenatlas.dc.gov/atlasapps/taxifare.aspx
A town car is probably about $10 more, but I haven't checked. The SuperShuttle costs around $27, with lots of extra stops -- it doesn't seem worth it (I remember being stuck on a SuperShuttle at LAX once, as it circled round and round for 15 minutes trying to get enough customers before it left: that's no fun after a long flight).
The cheapest option is take the WMATA 5A express bus from the airport to the L'Enfant or Rosslyn Metro stops. From what I've found online, it's $3.10 for the bus, and around $3 for the Metro. Here's the bus timetable:
http://www.wmata.com/timetables/dc/5a.pdf
And here's the trip planner on the WMATA site:
15 new gates in Concourse B
Dulles has just opened an extension with 15 new domestic gates in Concourse B. JetBlue, Virgin America, and AirTran are coming in first, and American and Delta will take some of the gates later:
New Market
No ATIS/AWOS,and the wind sock is hard to see from the air. Caution for rising terrain around the runway. Otherwise just a sleepy rural airport.
Farmville
Unexpected visit due to prop breakage when the spinner came off. Folks helped out and got me fed, nice place. Met the Virginia Aviation Ambassador, she has been flying for 58 years.!!
Designed by Committe
There's an old joke about an animal looking like it was designed by a committee. If the animal were an airport it would be Dulles. Dulles is the "poster child" that proves letting government agencies and retired generals named "Bozo" is a bad thing. When I was traveling extensively for the US government there was a secret "caste' system that we insiders knew. If a government traveler was allowed to buy his/her air tickets into Washington National (DCA) s/he was "somebody". All others were forced to fly into Dulles.
I was here the first time for a scheduled two-hour stop here the night of 4 October 1965, so I've been a customer for a while now. Those clumsy, swaying "people movers" that go between the terminals used to drive right out the the aircraft and pick-up/drop off at the aircraft door. back in the design phase the "committee" decided that since most delays seemed to happen at the gate, they would eliminate the gate. Hmmmm. Dulles now has taxi-up gates like every other intelligent airport, but they had to keep those automotive dinosaurs around for something, government property after all.
When you die after holding high office one of the disadvantages (aside from being dead. that is) is that they will likely name something after you, and being deceased you will have little choice in the matter. People today may not realize that John Foster Dulles was a heck of a lot better Secretary of State than Dulles is an airport.
KHEF Manassas
🔗 Sun, 27 Apr 2008
— @Fluky at Manassas Regional Airport/Harry P. Davis Field, United States
Home base for me (Fluky is the gate where most from KHEF leave the ADIZ). Use Dulles Aviation Inc. FBO at west ramp. New restaurant at east ramp but I have not tried them yet.