A mobile lounge transporting passengers at Washington Dulles International Airport struck a terminal dock Monday afternoon, injuring 18 people, according to airport officials. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said the incident occurred at about 4:30 p.m. as the vehicle was pulling up to the building at an angle.
#BREAKING @Dulles_Airport @MWAAFireRescue on scene D Gate stuck by mobile lounge. Several injuries pic.twitter.com/FkBZPFweZv
— Charlie Bragale (@charlienbc) November 10, 2025
The passengers were taken to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, and airport operations continued normally, although the incident did cause damage to the terminal, the authority said. Passengers used the stairs to exit the lounge after the crash.
Dulles maintains a fleet of 19 mobile lounges, each capable of carrying up to 102 passengers. The large, bus-like vehicles have been in use at the airport since 1959 to move travelers between terminals and aircraft.
Officials have recently criticized the airport’s aging people mover system.
“The people mover is a relic of the past,” said Trent Morse, a former Trump administration official who was recently nominated to the board of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, during a Senate hearing.
“It’s an embarrassment that international travelers, visiting the capital of the most powerful nation in the world, are transported back to the sixties.”
Even so, the airport’s fleet of mobile lounges are set to continue being used for the foreseeable future. They are currently undergoing a long-term refurbishment project for continued use.
We're here to set the record straight. Despite the rumors and misinformation, the Mobile Lounges aren't going anywhere anytime soon. We are in the middle of a multi-year refurbishment project!! pic.twitter.com/yT7mhFDlt7
— Dulles Airport (IAD) (@Dulles_Airport) July 23, 2025
According to NBC Washington, 16 mobile lounge accidents were reported between 2007 and 2017, including one fatal crash.
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