Washington National Cathedral
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Washington National Cathedral is officially dedicated as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul.
Location:	Wisconsin Avenue and Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.
Coordinates:	38°55′50.05″N 77°4′15.13″W / 38.9305694°N 77.0708694°W / 38.9305694; -77.0708694Coordinates: 38°55′50.05″N 77°4′15.13″W / 38.9305694°N 77.0708694°W / 38.9305694; -77.0708694
Built:	1907-1990
Architect:	George Frederick Bodley, Philip Hubert Frohman
Architectural style:	Neogothic
Governing body:	Episcopal Church
NRHP Reference#:	74002170
Added to NRHP:	May 3, 1974

The west rose window was dedicated in 1977 in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II and President Jimmy Carter.

The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, popularly known as Washington National Cathedral, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church located in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. Of neogothic design, it is the eighthteen-largest cathedral in the world, the second-largest in the United States,^[1] and the fourth-tallest structure in Washington, D.C. The cathedral is the seat of both the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Katharine Jefferts Schori, and the Bishop of the Diocese of Washington, Mariann Edgar Budde. In 2009, nearly 400,000 visitors toured the structure. The congregation numbers 800.^[2]

The Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation, under the first seven Bishops of Washington, erected the cathedral under a charter passed by the United States Congress on January 6, 1893. Construction began on September 29, 1907, when the foundation stone was laid in the presence of President Theodore Roosevelt and a crowd of more than 20,000, and ended 83 years later when the last finial was placed in the presence of President George H. W. Bush in 1990. Decorative work, such as carvings and statuary, is ongoing as of 2011. The foundation operates and funds the cathedral. In 2011, the cathedral was the recipient of $700,000 in federal funds as part of the Save America's Treasures program. ^[3]

The cathedral stands at Massachusetts and Wisconsin avenues in the northwest quadrant of Washington. It is an associate member of the Washington Theological Consortium.^[4] It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2007, it was ranked third on the List of America's Favorite Architecture by the American Institute of Architects.^[5]

History[link]

Construction[link]

In 1792, Pierre L'Enfant's "Plan of the Federal City" set aside land for a "great church for national purposes." The National Portrait Gallery now occupies that site. In 1891, a meeting was held to renew plans for a national cathedral. In 1893, the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation of the District of Columbia was granted a charter from Congress to establish the cathedral. The commanding site on Mount Saint Alban was chosen. Henry Yates Satterlee, first Episcopal Bishop of the Diocese of Washington, chose George Frederick Bodley, Britain's leading Anglican church architect, as the head architect. Henry Vaughan was selected supervising architect.

Construction started September 29, 1907, with a ceremonial address by President Theodore Roosevelt and the laying of the cornerstone. In 1912, Bethlehem Chapel opened for services in the unfinished cathedral, which have continued daily ever since. When construction of the cathedral resumed after a brief hiatus for World War I, both Bodley and Vaughan had died. Gen. John J. Pershing led fundraising efforts for the church after World War I. American architect Philip Hubert Frohman took over the design of the cathedral and was thenceforth designated the principal architect. Funding for the National Cathedral has come entirely from private sources. Maintenance and upkeep continue to rely entirely upon private support.

National House of Prayer[link]

Congress has designated the Washington National Cathedral as the "National House of Prayer". During World War II, monthly services were held there "on behalf of a united people in a time of emergency". Before and since, the building has hosted other major events, both religious and secular, that have drawn the attention of the American people.

Washington National Cathedral Twilight

Major events[link]

Major services[link]

The state funeral of Ronald Reagan

funerals for three American Presidents has been held at the cathedral:^[6]

• Dwight Eisenhower (1969): Eisenhower lay in repose at the cathedral before lying in state
• Ronald Reagan (2004)^[7]
• Gerald Ford (2007)

Memorial services were also held for presidents Warren G. Harding, William Taft, Calvin Coolidge, Harry S Truman, and Richard M. Nixon.^[6]

Presidential prayer services were held the day after the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1937; Ronald Reagan in 1985; George H.W. Bush in 1989; George W. Bush in 2001 and 2005, and Barack Obama in 2009.^[8]

Other events include:

• Funeral for former first lady Edith Bolling Galt Wilson (1961)^[6]
• Memorial service for former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt (1962)^[6]
• Memorial service for the casualties of the Vietnam War on November 14, 1982
• Funeral for Secretary of Commerce Ronald Brown (1996)
• Funeral for U.S. Ambassador to France Pamela Harriman (1997)
• Funeral for Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham (2001)
• Memorial service for the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks
• Special evensong for the victims of the Virginia Tech massacre
• Funeral for educator and civil rights leader Dorothy Height (2010)

It was from Washington National Cathedral's Canterbury Pulpit that the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered the final Sunday sermon of his life, just a few days before his assassination.^[9] A memorial service for King was held at the cathedral later the same week.

2011 earthquake[link]

The cathedral was damaged during the 2011 Virginia earthquake. Finial stones on several pinnacles broke off, and several pinnacles twisted out of alignment or collapsed entirely; some gargoyles and other carvings were damaged, and a hole was punched through the metal-clad roof by falling masonry. Cracks have also appeared in the flying buttresses surrounding the apse. Inside, initial inspections revealed less damage, with some mortar joints loose or falling out; the stone vaults have been deemed to be sound. The 5.8 earthquake, the largest the east coast of the United States had seen since 1944, was felt very strongly in Washington, D.C., and damaged several buildings along with the cathedral. Repairs are expected to cost millions and take several years to complete. The cathedral was closed from August 22, 2011-November 7, 2011. ^[10]

Architecture[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2011)

Looking east, looking up to the choir of the cathedral

Its final design shows a mix of influences from the various Gothic architectural styles of the Middle Ages, identifiable in its pointed arches, flying buttresses, a variety of ceiling vaulting, stained-glass windows and carved decorations in stone, and by its three similar towers, two on the west front and one surmounting the crossing. During an earthquake on August 23, 2011 three of the four top spires fell off the cathedral. The fourth spire was leaning.

Ceiling of the Cathedral facing the Main Altar.

Washington National Cathedral consists of a long, narrow rectangular mass formed by a nine-bay nave with wide side aisles and a five-bay chancel, intersected by a six bay transept. Above the crossing, rising 91 m (301 ft) above the ground, is the Gloria in Excelsis Tower; its top, at 206 m (676 ft) above sea level, is the highest point in Washington.^[11] The Pilgrim Observation Gallery—which occupies a space about 3/4ths of the way up in the west-end towers—provides sweeping views of the city. In total, the cathedral is 115 m (375 ft) above sea level. Unique in North America, the central tower has two full sets of bells — a 53-bell carillon and a 10-bell peal for change ringing; the change bells are rung by members of the Washington Ringing Society.^[12] The cathedral sits on a landscaped 57 acre (230,000 m²) plot on Mount Saint Alban.

The one-story porch projecting from the south transept has a large portal with a carved tympanum. This portal is approached by the Pilgrim Steps, a long flight of steps 12 m (40 ft) wide.

Most of the building is constructed using a buff-colored Indiana limestone over a traditional masonry core. Structural, load-bearing steel is limited to the roof's trusses (traditionally built of timber); concrete is used significantly in the support structures for bells of the central tower, and the floors in the west towers.

The pulpit was carved out of stones from Canterbury Cathedral; Glastonbury Abbey provided stone for the bishop's formal seat, the cathedra. The high altar, The Jerusalem Altar, is made from stones quarried at Solomon's Quarry near Jerusalem, reputedly where the stones for Solomon's Temple were quarried. In the floor directly in front of that altar are set ten stones from the Chapel of Moses on Mount Sinai, representing the Ten Commandments as a foundation for the Jerusalem Altar.

Side view

There are many other works of art including over two hundred stained glass windows, the most familiar of which may be the Space Window, honoring man's landing on the Moon, which includes a fragment of lunar rock at its center. Extensive wrought iron adorns the building, a large amount of it being the work of Samuel Yellin. A substantial gate of forged iron by Albert Paley was installed on the north side of the crypt level in 2008. Intricate woodcarving, wall-sized murals and mosaics, and monumental cast bronze gates can also be found. Most of the decorative elements have Christian symbolism, in reference to the church's Episcopalian roots, but the cathedral is filled with memorials to persons or events of national significance: statues of Washington and Lincoln, state seals embedded in the marble floor of the narthex, state flags that hang along the nave, stained glass commemorating events like the Lewis and Clark expedition and the raising of the American flag at Iwo Jima.

The cathedral was built with several intentional "flaws" in keeping with an apocryphal medieval custom that sought to illustrate that only God can be perfect. Artistically speaking, these flaws (which often come in the form of intentional asymmetries) draw the observer's focus to the sacred geometry as well as compensate for visual distortions, a practice that has been used since the Pyramids and the Parthenon. Architecturally, it is thought that if the main aisle of the cathedral where it meets the cross section were not tilted slightly off its axis, a person who looked straight down the aisle could experience a slight visual distortion, rendering the building shorter than it is, much like looking down railroad tracks.^{[citation needed]} The architects designed the crypt chapels in Norman, Romanesque, and Transitional styles predating the Gothic, as though the cathedral had been built as a successor to earlier churches, a common occurrence in European cathedrals.

The Cathedral boasts what is probably the world's only sculpture of Darth Vader on a religious building. During construction of the west towers of the Cathedral, developers decided to hold a competition for children to design decorative sculptures for the Cathedral. The image of the villainous Vader, sculpted by Jay Hall Carpenter and carved by Patrick J. Plunkett, was placed high upon the northwest tower of the Cathedral, fulfilling the role of a traditional grotesque.^[13] There are many gargoyles on the cathedral. The gargoyle designs are varying, but they are usually located on a roof or tower.

Architects[link]

Detail of cast bronze gate

The cathedral's master plan was designed by George Frederick Bodley, a highly regarded British Gothic Revival architect of the late-19th and early-20th centuries, and was influenced by Canterbury. Landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. contributed a landscaping plan for the cathedral close. After Bodley died in 1907, his partner Henry Vaughan revised the original design, but work stopped during World War I and Vaughan died in 1917. When work resumed, the chapter hired New York architecture firm Frohman, Robb and Little to execute the building. Philip Hubert Frohman, who had designed his first fully functional home at the age of 14 and received his architectural degree at the age of 16, and his partners worked to perfect Bodley's vision, adding the carillon section of the central tower, enlarging the west façade, and making numerous smaller changes. Ralph Adams Cram was hired to supervise Frohman, because of his experience with the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, but Cram insisted on so many major changes to the original design that Frohman convinced the Cathedral Chapter to fire him. By Frohman's death in 1972, the final plans had been completed and the building was finished accordingly.

Images of architectural details[link]

• 

  Donation Thanks Engraving

• 

  Vaulting in northwest cloister

• 

  Pilgrim Observation Gallery

• 

  Flying buttresses

• 

  Lincoln statue (by Walker Hancock)

• 

  Statue of George Washington (by Lee Lawrie)

• 

  Stained-glass window

• 

  GITMO stone inscribed in 1964 as a gift to the Cathedral from those at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base

• 

  Mount Sinai stone

• 

  Women's porch

• 

  South transept tympanum

• 

  Detail of figures flanking south doors

• 

  Detail of the Moses window, by Lawrence Saint

• 

  A depiction of Jesus' burial in the crypt (basement) of Washington National Cathedral

• 

  Stained glass window depicting major events of the life of Confederate General Robert E. Lee

• 

  Stained glass window depicting the life of Stonewall Jackson

• 

  Stained glass depicting Charles Warren

• 

  Stained glass dedicated to Andrew Carnegie

• 

  Darth Vader grotesque

• Washington National Cathedral crucifix above main altar.JPG

  The rood in the chancel arch separating the nave from the choir

Leadership and funding[link]

The East End of the Cathedral, with the Ter Sanctus reredos, featuring 110 carved figures surrounding the central figure of Jesus.^[14]

The cathedral is both the episcopal seat of the bishop of Washington (currently the Right Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde) and the primatial seat of the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church (currently the Most Reverend Katharine Jefferts Schori). Budde was elected by the diocese of Washington in June 2011, to replace then-Bishop John Bryson Chane; upon her confirmation in November 2011, she became the 9th bishop of the diocese, and the first woman to fill the role.

The current dean of the cathedral is the Very Reverend Samuel T. Lloyd III, who took office on April 23, 2005; he has announced his retirement, effective September 18, 2011. Lloyd will return to Trinity Church, Boston to assume the role of Priest-in-Charge.^[15] Before becoming dean, Lloyd was the chaplain of the University of the South and later rector of Trinity Church in Boston, Massachusetts.

Former deans:

• Alfred Harding (de facto; 1909–1916)
• George C. F. Bratenahl (1916–1936)
• Noble C. Powell (1937–1941)
• Zebarney T. Phillips (1941–1942)
• John W. Suter (1944–1950)
• Francis B. Sayre, Jr. (1951–1978)
• John T. Walker (1978–1989; simultaneously bishop)
• Nathan D. Baxter (1992–2003)

The National Cathedral Association (NCA) seeks to raise and provide funds for and promote the Washington National Cathedral. Across the United States, it has more than 14,000 members, more than 88 percent of whom live outside the Washington area, and who are divided into committees by state. Visitors to the cathedral provide another significant source of funds, through donations and group touring fees. Every year, each state has a state day at the cathedral, on which that state is recognized by name in the prayers. Over a span of about four years, each state is further recognized at a Major State Day, at which time those who live in the state are encouraged to make a pilgrimage to the cathedral and dignitaries from the state are invited to speak. American state flags were displayed in the nave until 2007; currently the display of the state flags alternates throughout the year with the display of liturgical banners hung on the pillars, reflecting the seasons of the Church year.

The budget, $27 million in 2008, was trimmed to $13 million in 2010. Staff was reduced from 170 to 70. There was an endowment of $50 million.^[2]

Worship[link]

The worship department is, like the cathedral itself, rooted in the doctrine and practice of the Episcopal Church, and based in the Book of Common Prayer. Four services (and five in the summer) are held each weekday, including the daily Eucharist. Sunday through Thursday, the Cathedral Choirs sing Evensong. The forty-minute service is attended by roughly fifty to seventy-five people (more on Sunday). Five services of the Eucharist are also held on Sunday, including the Contemporary Folk Eucharist held in the Chapel of St. Joseph of Arimathea, and a Healing Eucharist in the late evening.

The cathedral also has been a temporary home to several congregations, including a Jewish synagogue and an Eastern Orthodox community. It has also been the site for several ecumenical and/or interfaith services. In October 2005, at the cathedral, the Rev. Nancy Wilson was consecrated and installed as Moderator (Denominational Executive) of the Metropolitan Community Church, by its founding Moderator, the Rev. Dr. Troy Perry.

Each Christmas, the cathedral holds special services, which are broadcast to the world. The service of lessons and carols is distributed by Public Radio International. Christmas at Washington National Cathedral is a live television broadcast of the 9 a.m. Eucharist on Christmas Day. It is produced by Allbritton Communications and is shown on national affiliates in most cities around the United States. Some affiliates broadcast the service at noon. The Christmas service at the cathedral has been broadcast to the nation on television since 1953.

Music[link]

The Washington National Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys, founded in 1909, is one of very few cathedral choirs of men and boys in the United States with an affiliated school, in the English choir tradition. The 18–22 boys singing treble are of ages 8–14 and attend St. Albans School, the Cathedral school for boys, on singing scholarships.

In 1997, the Cathedral Choir of Men and Girls was formed by Bruce Neswick, using the same men as the choir of the men and boys. The two choirs currently share service duties and occasionally collaborate. The girl choristers attend the National Cathedral School.

The console of the Great Organ at Washington National Cathedral in 2010. It includes four manuals: the Choir, Great, Swell, and Solo. It is located in the Great Choir.

Both choirs have recently recorded several CDs, including a Christmas album; a U.S. premiere recording of Ståle Kleiberg's Requiem for the Victims of Nazi Persecution; and a patriotic album, America the Beautiful.

The choirs rehearse separately every weekday morning in a graded class incorporated into their school schedule. The choristers sing Evensong five days a week (the Boys Choir on Tuesdays and Thursdays and the Girls Choir on Mondays and Wednesdays). The choirs alternate Sunday worship duties, singing both morning Eucharist and afternoon Evensong when they are on call. The choirs also sing for numerous state and national events. The choirs are also featured annually on Christmas at Washington National Cathedral, broadcast nationally on Christmas Day.

The Great Organ was installed by the Ernest M. Skinner & Son Organ Company in 1938. The original instrument consisted of approximately 8,400 pipes. The instrument was enlarged by the Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company in 1963 and again between 1970 and 1975, during which time more than half of the original instrument was removed. The present instrument consists of 189 ranks and 10,647 pipes. It is the largest organ in the city of Washington and one of the 20 largest organs in the world.^[16][17]

Michael McCarthy is the Director of Music, Scott Dettra is the Cathedral Organist, and Jeremy Filsell is the Artist-in-Residence. The carillonneur is Edward M. Nassor.^[18] Former organists and choirmasters include Edgar Priest, Robert George Barrow, Paul Callaway, Richard Wayne Dirksen, Douglas Major, Bruce Neswick, James Litton, and Erik Wm. Suter.

The resident symphonic chorus of Washington National Cathedral is the Cathedral Choral Society.

Burials[link]

Several notable American citizens are buried in Washington National Cathedral and its columbarium:

Woodrow Wilson's Tomb

• Larz Anderson, businessman, diplomat
• Thomas John Claggett, first Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland
• William Forman Creighton, fifth Bishop of Washington
• Joseph Edward Davies (ashes), diplomat, presidential adviser. He gave a stained-glass window in the Cathedral in honor of his mother, Rachel Davies (Rahel o Fôn)
• George Dewey, United States Navy admiral
• Angus Dun (ashes), fourth Bishop of Washington
• Philip Frohman (ashes), cathedral architect, following the death of Bodley
• Alfred Harding, second Bishop of Washington
• Cordell Hull, United States Secretary of State
• Helen Keller (ashes), author, lecturer, advocate for the blind and deaf
• A.S. Mike Monroney (ashes), U.S. representative, senator
• Norman Prince, fighter pilot, member of the Lafayette Escadrille flying corps
• Henry Yates Satterlee, first Bishop of Washington
• Francis Bowes Sayre, Jr. (ashes), dean of the cathedral
• John Wesley Snyder (US Cabinet Secretary), Secretary of the Treasury in the Truman administration
• Leo Sowerby (ashes), composer, church musician
• Anne Sullivan (ashes), tutor and companion to Helen Keller, first woman interred here
• Stuart Symington, U.S. senator, presidential candidate
• Henry Vaughan, architect, associate of Bodley
• John Thomas Walker, sixth Bishop of Washington
• Isabel Weld Perkins, author, wife of Larz Anderson
• Edith Wilson, second wife of Woodrow Wilson and First Lady of the United States
• Woodrow Wilson, 28th U.S. president. Wilson's tomb includes variants on the Seal of the President of the United States and the coat of arms of Princeton University. Wilson is the only American president buried in the District of Columbia. His grandson, Francis Bowes Sayre, Jr., later became dean of the Cathedral and was also buried here.

References in popular culture[link]

• The cathedral is the setting of Margaret Truman's novel Murder at the National Cathedral.
• It is the location of Mrs. Landingham's funeral and President Bartlet's resulting tirade against God in the second season finale of The West Wing, "Two Cathedrals".
• The cathedral close, the area in and around the cathedral, is alluded to often, but rather vaguely, in the movie Along Came a Spider.
• Tom Clancy's novel Executive Orders includes a memorial service for the late president Rodger Durling, his wife, most of the United States Congress, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Supreme Court that takes place at this location. In an infamous scene, a soldier bearing the president's casket slips on some ice on the front steps and suffers crushed legs.
• In Elizabeth Hand's novel Winterlong, it appears as the "Engulfed Cathedral".
• It is a setting in Dan Brown's 2009 novel The Lost Symbol.
• It served as an architectural inspiration for Keep Venture in Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series^[19]
• It is the setting for the burial of fictional Supreme Court Justice Abraham Rosenberg in the movie The Pelican Brief, based off a John Grisham book of the same name.

See also[link]

• All Hallows Guild Carousel
• Washington National Cathedral Police

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Marjorie Hunt, The Stone Carvers: Master Craftsmen of Washington National Cathedral (Smithsonian, 1999).
• Step by Step and Stone by Stone: The History of the Washington National Cathedral (WNC, 1990).
• A Guide to the Washington Cathedral (National Cathedral Association, 1945).
• Peter W. Williams, Houses of God: Region, Religion, and Architecture in the United States (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1997).
• Cathedral Age (magazine).

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Washington National Cathedral

• Washington National Cathedral website
• Episcopal Diocese of Washington
• Jay Hall Carpenter, gargoyle sculptor, 20 years at the cathedral
• What does Darth Vader have to do with the Cathedral?
• Outdoor sculptures at the Washington National Cathedral

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Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
250px
IATA: DCA – ICAO: KDCA – FAA LID: DCA
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner		Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
Operator		Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
Serves		Washington Metropolitan Area
Location		Arlington County, Virginia
Elevation AMSL		15 ft / 5 m
Coordinates		38°51′08″N 077°02′16″W / 38.85222°N 77.03778°W / 38.85222; -77.03778Coordinates: 38°51′08″N 077°02′16″W / 38.85222°N 77.03778°W / 38.85222; -77.03778
Website		http://mwaa.com/reagan/reagan.htm
Maps
FAA airport diagram
DCA Location within Virginia
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
1/19	7,169	2,094	Asphalt
4/22	4,911	1,497	Asphalt
15/33	5,204	1,586	Asphalt
Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1]

Reagan Washington sign

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (IATA: DCA, ICAO: KDCA, FAA LID: DCA) is a public airport located 3 statute miles (4.8 km) south of downtown Washington, D.C., in Arlington County, Virginia.^[1] It is the commercial airport nearest to Washington, D.C. For many decades, the airport was called Washington National, but the airport was renamed Reagan National in 1998 to honor former U.S. President Ronald W. Reagan. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) operates the airport.

Reagan National is a focus city for US Airways, Reagan National's largest carrier. The US Airways Shuttle offers near-hourly air shuttle service to LaGuardia Airport in New York City and Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts. Delta Air Lines' Delta Shuttle also offers near-hourly air shuttle service to LaGuardia.

Other then 40 slot exemptions, flights into and out of DCA are not allowed to exceed 1,250 statute miles in any direction nonstop, in an effort to send the major air traffic volume to the larger but more distant Dulles International Airport. In 2010, the airport served about 18.1 million passengers.^[2]

Reagan National only provides U.S. immigration and customs facilities for corporate jet traffic; the only international flights allowed to land at DCA are those from airports with U.S. Customs and Border Protection preclearance facilities. For all other international passenger flights, those in the Washington Metropolitan Area can use Dulles International Airport west of the city and Baltimore-Washington International Airport northeast of the city.

History[link]

Hoover Field, near the present site of the Pentagon, was the first major terminal to be developed in the Capital area, opening its doors in 1926. The facility's single runway was intersected by a local street; guards had to stop automobile traffic during takeoffs and landings. The following year Washington Airport, another privately operated field, began service next door.^[3] In 1930, the economics of the Great Depression caused the two terminals to merge to form Washington-Hoover Airport. Bordered on the east by U.S. Route 1, with its accompanying high-tension electrical wires, and obstructed by a high smokestack on one approach and a dump nearby, the field was less than adequate.

Although the need for a better airport was acknowledged in 37 studies conducted between 1926 and 1938,^[3] there was a statutory prohibition against federal development of airports. When Congress lifted the prohibition in 1938, President Franklin Roosevelt made a recess appropriation of $15 million to build National Airport by reallocating funds from other purposes. Construction of Washington National Airport began in 1940–41 by a company led by John McShain. Congress challenged the legality of FDR's recess appropriation, but construction of the new airport continued.^[4]

The airport is southwest of Washington, D.C. The western part of the airport was once within a large Virginia plantation, a remnant of which is now inside a historic site located near the airport's Metrorail station (see Abingdon (plantation) for history). The eastern part of the airport was constructed in the District of Columbia on and near mudflats that were within the tidal Potomac River near Gravelly Point, about 4 statute miles (6.4 km) from the United States Capitol, using landfill dredged from the Potomac.

The airport opened on June 16, 1941.^[3] In 1945, Congress passed a law that established the airport was legally within Virginia but under the jurisdiction of the federal government.^[3]

The April 1957 Official Airline Guide shows 316 weekday departures: 95 Eastern (plus six flights a week to/from South America), 77 American, 61 Capital, 23 National, 17 TWA, 10 United, 10 Delta, 6 Allegheny, 6 Braniff, 5 Piedmont, 3 Northeast and 3 Northwest.^{[citation needed]}

Service to the airport's dedicated Metro station began in 1977.^[5]

Expansion[link]

The runway layout — limited due to the location and orientation of the airport — has changed little, except for the 1956 closure of a fourth, east-west runway now used for taxiing and aircraft parking. The terminal building was supplemented by the completion of the North Terminal in 1958; the two were connected in 1961. A United Airlines holdroom complex was built in 1965, and a facility for American Airlines was completed in 1968. A commuter terminal was constructed in 1970.^[3]

Despite the expansions, several efforts have been made to restrict the growth of the airport. The advent of jet aircraft as well as traffic growth led Congress to pass the Washington Airport Act of 1950, which resulted in the opening of Dulles Airport in 1962. Concerns about aviation noise led to the imposition of noise restrictions even before jet service began in 1966. To reduce congestion and drive traffic to alternative airports, the Federal Aviation Administration imposed landing slot and perimeter restrictions on National and four other high-density airports in 1969.^{[citation needed]}

Transfer of control and renaming[link]

In 1984, Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole appointed a commission to study transferring National and Dulles Airports from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to a local entity, which could use airport revenues to finance improvements.^[4] The commission recommended that one multi-state agency administer both Dulles and National, over the alternative of having Virginia control Dulles and the District of Columbia control National.^[4] In 1987, Congress, through legislation,^[6] transferred control of the airport from the FAA to the new Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority with the Authority's decisions being subject to a Congressional review panel. The constitutionality of the review panel was later challenged in the Supreme Court and the Court has twice declared the oversight panel unconstitutional.^[7] Even after this decision, however, Congress has continued to intervene in the management of the airports.^[8]

On February 6, 1998, President Bill Clinton signed legislation^[9] changing the airport's name from Washington National Airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, to honor the former president on his 87th birthday.^[10] The legislation, passed by Congress in 1998, was drafted against the wishes of MWAA officials and political leaders in Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C.^[11][12] Opponents of the renaming argued that a large federal office building had already been named for Reagan (the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center) and that the airport was already named for a United States President (George Washington).^[12] The bill expressly stated that it did not require the expenditure of any funds to accomplish the name change; however, regional, state and federal authorities were later required to change highway and transit signs at their own additional expense as new signs were made. ^[13][14]

Construction of current terminal buildings[link]

DCA control tower and new terminal C

With the addition of more flights and limited space in the aging main terminal, the airport began an extensive renovation and expansion in the 1990s. Hangar 11 on the northern end of the airport was converted into The USAir Interim Terminal, designed by Joseph C. Giuliani, FAIA. Soon after an addition for Delta Air Lines was added in 1989 and was later converted to Authority offices. These projects allowed for the relocation of several gates in the main terminal until the new $450 million terminal complex became operational. On July 27, 1997, the new terminal complex, consisting of terminals B and C and two parking garages, opened. Argentine architect César Pelli designed the new terminals of the airport. The USAir Interim Terminal closed immediately after the opening and was converted back into a hangar. One pier of the main terminal (now Terminal A), which mainly housed American Airlines and Pan Am, was demolished; the other pier, originally designed for Northwest/TWA remains operational today as gates 1–9. The American Airlines terminal, the Northwest/TWA terminal, and the US Air Interim terminal were designed by Joseph C. Giuliani, FAIA of Giuliani Associates Architects.

Before 1999, Runway 1/19 and 4/22 were originally designated 18/36 and 3/21.

Operations[link]

Tightened security and safety concerns[link]

Many pilots^[15] regard the "River Visual" approach as one of the more interesting in the United States.

Given Reagan National Airport's proximity to the city and high-security facilities, Reagan National has extra security precautions required by the Washington Air Defense Identification Zone that were in place since the airport began operations.^[16]

Prior to the September 11 attacks in 2001, the most notable security measure was the southbound approach into the airport. Most of central Washington D.C. is prohibited airspace up to 18,000 feet (5,500 m). Due to this restriction, pilots approaching from the north follow the path of the Potomac River and make a steep turn shortly before landing on the southbound runway. This approach is known as the River Visual. Similarly, flights taking off to the north are required to climb quickly and take a steep left turn, to avoid contact with the Washington Monument or flight over the White House.^[17]

After the attacks, the airport was closed for several weeks, and security was tightened extensively when it reopened. Increased security measures included:

• A ban on aircraft with more than 156 seats (lifted in April 2002)^[18]
• A ban on the "River Visual" approach (lifted in April 2002)^[18]
• A requirement that, 30 minutes prior to landing or following takeoff, passengers were required to remain seated; if anyone stood up, the aircraft was to be diverted to Washington Dulles International Airport under military escort and the person standing would be detained and questioned by federal law enforcement officials (lifted in July 2005)^[19]
• A ban on general aviation (lifted in October 2005, subject to the restrictions below)^[20]

On October 18, 2005, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was reopened to general aviation on a limited basis (48 operations per day) and under serious restrictions: passenger and crew manifests must be submitted to the Transportation Security Administration 24 hours in advance, and all planes must pass through one of 27 "gateway airports" where re-inspections of aircraft, passengers, and baggage take place. An armed security officer must be on board before departing a gateway airport.^[21]

On March 23, 2011, the air traffic control supervisor on duty reportedly fell asleep during the night shift. Two aircraft on approach to the airport were unable to contact anyone in the control tower and subsequently landed unassisted.^[22]

The "River Visual" approach[link]

A U.S. Airways A319 on final approach for National as seen from the Arlington Memorial Bridge.

Reagan National Airport also has noise restrictions that are some of the most restrictive in the country.^[23] Pilots are required to use the "River Visual" approach (used for runway 19), which follows the course of the Potomac River, and is only possible with a ceiling of at least 3,500 feet (1,100 m) and visibility of 3 statute miles (4.8 km) or more.^[24] There are lights on the Key Bridge, Theodore Roosevelt Bridge, Arlington Memorial Bridge, and the George Mason Memorial Bridge to aid pilots following the river. Aircraft using the approach can be observed from various parks on the river's west bank. Passengers seated on the left side of an airplane that is landing can easily see the Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the World War II Memorial, Georgetown University, the National Mall, and the White House. Passengers seated on the right side can see CIA headquarters, Arlington National Cemetery, the Pentagon, and the United States Air Force Memorial.

When visibility and ceiling are below the minimums for the River Visual and southerly winds restrict northbound runway operations, aircraft fly an offset localizer or GPS approach to Runway 19, again involving a final turn moments before touchdown, or they fly a VOR or GPS approach to either of the shorter Runways 15 and 22, which are marginally usable by air carrier jets.^{[citation needed]}

Perimeter restrictions[link]

An American Airlines MD-80 flying the River Visual approach by the Lincoln Memorial.

Reagan National Airport is subject to a federally-mandated perimeter limitation and may not accommodate nonstop flights to or from cities beyond a 1,250-statute mile (2,010 km) radius, with limited exceptions. The U.S. Department of Transportation has issued "beyond-perimeter slot exemptions" which allow specified carriers to operate 20 daily round-trip flights to cities outside the perimeter. These exemptions are allocated as follows:

In 1999, Senator John McCain of Arizona introduced legislation to remove the 1,250-statute mile (2,010 km) perimeter restriction,^{[citation needed]} infuriating some local residents concerned about noise and traffic from increased service by larger, long-haul aircraft. McCain argued that the move would improve competition, while critics^[specify] charged he was supporting the interests of Phoenix, Arizona-based America West Airlines (AWA). In the end the restriction was not lifted, but the FAA was permitted to add additional exemptions, which went not to AWA but to competitor Alaska Airlines. America West (now US Airways) later gained additional exemptions for non-stop service to Phoenix in 2004.

Originally the airport had no perimeter rule; in 1954-1960 airlines scheduled nonstop flights to California on piston-engine airliners.^{[citation needed]} Scheduled jet airliners were not allowed at all until April 1966; the perimeter rule arrived with them, and apparently applied only to them. The initial perimeter was 650 statute miles (1,050 km), except that airports under 1,000 statute miles (1,600 km) that had scheduled nonstops in 1965 were allowed to retain them. This meant Minneapolis-St Paul was allowed nonstop jet flights but Kansas City, New Orleans, and Fort Lauderdale were not. In 1981 the perimeter became a flat 1,000 statute miles (1,600 km); it expanded to 1,250 statute miles (2,010 km), enough to encompass Houston, in 1986-87.

Traffic and statistics[link]

This is a view of the airport from the north, showing terminals B and C. It was taken from Gravelly Point, a popular park where people can watch planes take off or land.

In 2010, Reagan National Airport handled 18,118,713 passengers.^[2] US Airways has the largest share of traffic at the airport, accounting for 21.56% as of February 2011^[update]. Delta Air Lines, the second-largest, accounts for 14.53% of traffic, with American Airlines in third at 13.38%.^[25]

Traffic by calendar year

	Passengers	Change from previous year	Aircraft operations	Cargo (pounds)[27]
1999	15,185,348		291,765	83,199,747
2000	15,888,199	4.63%	297,879	83,199,394
2001	13,265,387	16.51%	244,008	55,534,294
2002	12,881,601	2.89%	215,691	12,925,992
2003	14,223,123	10.41%	250,802	12,732,373
2004	15,944,542	12.10%	268,576	11,182,022
2005	17,847,884	11.94%	276,056	8,751,702
2006	18,550,785	3.94%	276,419	7,963,107
2007	18,679,343	0.69%	275,433	5,544,936
2008	18,028,287	3.49%	277,298	7,321,546
2009	17,577,359	2.50%	272,146	12,811,229
2010	18,118,713	3.08%	271,097	14,506,056
2011	18,823,094	3.89%	281,770	13,802,787
Source: Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority[2]

Terminals[link]

The main hall connecting Terminals B and C.

Terminal A[link]

Terminal A opened in 1941 and was expanded in 1955 to accommodate more passengers and airlines. This terminal is currently undergoing renovation to restore its original architecture, and is expected to be completed in a couple of years.^{[citation needed]}

Terminals B and C[link]

Terminals B and C opened in 1997, replacing a collection of airline-specific terminals built during the 1960s. The new terminals were designed by architect Cesar Pelli and house 35 gates. There is no Gate 13, possibly due to superstition.^{[citation needed]} Terminals B and C offer many different dining options including TGI Friday's and Cinnabon.

Airlines and destinations[link]

Passenger service[link]