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A new proposal from the White House saw the US President, Donald Trump, negotiating with the minority leader of the Senate, Chuck Schumer, wherein the President was willing to release the frozen funding earmarked for the Gateway project in New York, in return for Washington’s main airport and New York’s Penn Station being renamed after the President himself.
The Gateway project, despite being underway and now in jeopardy without further funding, the caveat from the President has been rejected by the Senate lead, stating that it is not within Schumer’s purview of power to make such changes.
Renaming Washington Dulles Airport?
Washington D.C. being the capital of United States, a key gateway to the state and the city, is its main airport, Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD). As per reports from CNN, as part of the recent negotiation between the nation’s President, Donald Trump, and the Senate Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer, the President is willing to release over $16 billion in frozen funds assigned to New York’s gateway project, if Schumer in return can facilitate IAD and the Penn Station in New York being renamed after the President.
However, Schumer has reportedly rejected his request, stating that it is not within his power to deliver on such requests. As per The Flying Magazine, the airport (IAD) is operated by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which also operates the other airport in the state, the Washington Ronald Reagan National Airport, which is named after the 40th President of the USA.
It is also worth noting that the interest in IAD is more than just the airport’s name, as late last year, the United States Department of Transportation (US DoT) published a press release, stating that a new initiative is being explored regarding the “revitalization of Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)” and that proposals are welcome redesign existing terminals or replace and build new terminals and concourses.
More About Washington Dulles Airport
Washington Dulles Airport is a major US gateway when it comes to domestic and international air travel, with the airport offering significant connectivity within the North American, Latin American region, but also a considerable number of services to Europe and a few long-haul destinations in the Middle East, Africa and the Far East regions.
United Airlines is the largest airline in IAD, operating an extensive network of domestic flights, but also uses the airport as one of its largest Transatlantic gateways. Additionally, because of United’s presence and connectivity at the airport, IAD also acts as a hub for United’s fellow Star Alliance members, including the likes of Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, ANA and more. According to airport data from FlightRadar24, IAD uses four runways, from which three are parallel (Runways 01 L/C/R and 19 L/C/R) along with the fourth runway being designated as Runway 12 or 30. The airport is a large enough hub that it even hosts a daily Airbus A380 service from Dubai, operated by 
Emirates and has also previously hosted A380 services from carriers such as British Airways and Lufthansa.
As per the DoT press release, IAD requires a “complete refresh to assume its proper role as the premier international gateway” because the terminal facility and infrastructure are reportedly outdated, making the airport inefficient.
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Other Interesting Airport Name Changes
Considering the topic of the article, here are a few examples of airports having their names changed, and surprisingly, there are a number of US airports that have had their names changed, a key airport being New York’s John F, Kennedy / JFK International Airport, which was originally named Idlewild Airport. A second notable airport being the aforementioned Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport, which was previously named Washington National Airport.
Elsewhere in Europe, Madeira’s Funchal Airport (FNC) in Portugal, was renamed after the legendary Portuguese footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo in 2017, which is also known for the challenging approach it offers to pilots due to its location being subjected to strong winds. Other European airports that have had their names changed include Liverpool Airport in the UK, which is named after a member of the Beatles band, called John Lennon and Paris’ primary airport, named Charles de Gaulle (CDG), named in the honor of a former French President.
What are your thoughts on renaming Washington Dulles Airport? Let us know in the comments below.
