Mission Impossible?

May 21, 2013 10:08 PM

Can I make my connecting flight, DC edition.

I arrive in Dulles at 12:30 PM on Saturday, May 1 on an international flight. My connecting flight takes off from DCA (Reagan National) at 2:47 PM. Will I be able to make it given distance and traffic?

I am considering not checking in any luggage so that I can get out of Dulles quicker. I will be taking a taxi if that matters.

posted by Gringos Without Borders to Travel & Transportation around Washington, DC (12 answers total)

I think it's going to be tough to make it in general and nearly impossible to do so with checked baggage. I would definitely not check anything.
posted by feloniousmonk at 10:20 PM on May 21, 2013

Best answer: I'm sorry, no, I can't see how you'd be able to make it. Two hours would be a stretch even if your flights were in the same airport, especially considering you're coming off an international flight. You'll need to: make it off the plane, walk to customs, get your bags (or not), clear customs, get a cab, drive 30 miles in busy traffic, check in, wait in the security line, and make it to your departure gate - with 30 minutes to spare. I really don't see how this is possible in 2:17 hours.
posted by hapax_legomenon at 10:21 PM on May 21, 2013 [5 favorites]

Best answer: Depending on where your gate at Dulles is, you are probably going to have to take one of those shuttle things from the gate to the terminal itself. That can easily add 10 minutes all by itself. I'm going to vote no, not makeable.
posted by rtha at 10:28 PM on May 21, 2013

If you were getting in a cab at 12:30 to the airport I'd say this was already crunchtime material to be on that plane in time. Much less leaving a plane, customs, and everything mentioned above. I feel like if your flight arrived at 11:30 you'd probably still barely have a moment where you sat down.

I've arrived at the front door of the airport an hour and a half before my non-international flight and never say down for more than 2 minutes. Door, walking around, airline desk, checking stuff, walking around, security, walking around, gate, sit down for barely long enough for my DS to turn on then stand up again and onto the plane.

Airports eat time. So do taxis.

I've never even been to these specific airports and I feel like this would be stressful and impossible, and would avoid it like the plague. This is the type of unrealistic plan i personally make too often that would result in me being late. Without checked luggage this is absolute best the real life equivalent of a super Mario bros speedrun.
posted by emptythought at 10:41 PM on May 21, 2013

Best answer: Another vote for not doable. By the time you get off the plane, onto the caterpillar thing (every time I've flown internationally into Dulles I've had to take one) and through customs it will already be at least 1:15.. then getting in the cab line, getting to DCA, getting through security... pretty much guaranteed not to work out.
posted by charmcityblues at 10:46 PM on May 21, 2013

Best answer: No. Just clearing customs at Dulles will easily take an hour. The commute between the two airports is about an hour even though it's around 30 miles. Assuming light Saturday traffic you might be able to make it in 50 minutes, but I'd be surprised to see it shorter. You'd still need to run into Reagan and clear security (generally not too horrible at Reagan).

Reroute now.
posted by 26.2 at 11:02 PM on May 21, 2013 [1 favorite]

The traffic in DC is some of the worst in the U.S., and it's only marginally better on Saturday afternoons. That 33 minutes that Google is quoting is under ideal conditions.

Now, if there are no consequences to missing the connection, you might just go for it. If it's just me, and my connection is "protected," meaning that all the travel is on one PNR so the airline is required to rebook if I miss the connection, and it's not a peak travel time so I was unlikely to suffer an extended wait to be rebooked, then you might consider it. My guess is you'll get into DCA around 2:10 and possibly make it, but under most circumstances I wouldn't even try.

If you do try, check no luggage, have your DCA boarding pass already printed, and pray.
posted by wnissen at 11:04 PM on May 21, 2013

Best answer: What they said. Dulles is a wretch of an airport in getting from gate to gate or gate to terminal; international passengers almost always get stuck in one of those ridiculous boxes and wheeled to passport control and customs.

As wnissen says, if it's a protected connection on a single itinerary, you could show up and dump the consequences on your carrier, but it'd be less stressful to rebook an alternative connection ahead of time.
posted by holgate at 11:44 PM on May 21, 2013

Response by poster: Big thanks to everybody who replied. I knew that it was impossible but I was hoping for a different answer.

I changed the international flight so that I arrive two days earlier.
posted by Gringos Without Borders at 12:09 AM on May 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

The traffic from dulles to national in the middle of the day isn't bad at all, but customs and baggage is going to be a problem.
posted by empath at 12:18 AM on May 22, 2013

I see several lines you'd have to wait in, all of which would eat up time:
*The 'people mover' shuttle at Dulles that would bring you from your landing gate to the main terminal (no, it's not something you can avoid by choosing to walk instead);
*Baggage (depending on the size of your bag, the airline might *require* you to check it);
*Customs;
*The taxi line;
*Incoming traffic at National (yeah, it's always slow & clogged);
*TSA security check;
*Check-in at your gate.

Just over two hours between flights, even assuming your incoming flight arrives on time (not likely!), plus the drive from Dulles to National (which gonna be *at least* 45 minutes, IF traffic is perfectly in your favor)..... skip it, you would NOT make it. Heck, I'd be leary of connecting flights that close together at the same airport, let alone one at Dulles and one at National.
posted by easily confused at 3:01 AM on May 22, 2013

I can't find a link to validate it --so take this with a touch of skepticism-- but I believe National Airport requires people/bags to be checked in 45 minutes to an hour before takeoff (which is a longer lead time than most other U.S. airports) for national security reasons. I was once bumped off a flight since I got delayed on the way there and tried to check a bag in 5 minutes after the official window closed.

So regardless of the time you get into the D.C. area, make sure you get to National earlier than you would otherwise.
posted by psoas at 5:15 AM on May 22, 2013 [1 favorite]