Washington Dulles International Airport, in partnership with NASA, is making travel even more enjoyable for its youngest customers. Children traveling through Dulles International can take off on their very own “FunWay” adventure in a new children’s play area, now open in Concourse B, near gate B70. The Kids’ FunWay is engaging and interactive and offers climbing attractions inspired by aviation-themed structures. The centerpiece of the play area is “Tommy Tower,” which is modeled after Dulles International’s historic air traffic control tower. A kid-sized statue of Orville the Squirrel, named after Orville Wright of the Wright Brothers, welcomes children as they enter. Additional play area elements include two futuristic jets, climbing luggage and tires.

 
Photo credit: Dulles International / J. David Buerk

The Kids’ FunWay offers a safe play area for children, and also includes seating for parents, shoe cubbies and USB/plug-in charging stations just outside the area. The interior walls are decorated with kid-friendly educational facts about airplanes and aviation. Additionally, youngsters will find delight from the interactive “Play Me” video game console, loaded with over 100 games in six languages. It is open to children no more than 42 inches in height and younger than 12 years old. Adult supervision is required at all times.

The Kids’ FunWay, including the Orville character and two aircraft elements, is on loan from the aeronautics research public engagement group at NASA. It was officially dedicated on Friday, August 19, with the assistance of special guests from NASA, including a real-life Orville mascot, and students from the Winwood Children’s Center in Gainesville, Virginia.

 
Photo credit: Dulles International / J. David Buerk

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority operates Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport, the Dulles Airport Access Highway and the Dulles Toll Road and also manages construction of the Silver Line project, a 23-mile extension of the Washington region’s Metrorail public transit system through Fairfax County and into Loudoun County, Virginia. More than 44 million passengers a year pass through the two airports. The Airports Authority generates more than 387,000 jobs in the National Capital Region.