TSA requires that passengers on flights to or from DCA have to be screened by TSA security screeners. The security screening is the same as that required for passengers on commercial airlines, and generally takes only a few minutes. TSA also requires that aircraft and crew that fly to or from DCA without passengers (for instance, repositioning flights) have to be screened by TSA personnel.

Only specific airports (“gateway airports”) are equipped to accommodate this screening process. Only these airports have been approved by TSA as gateway airports for flights to DCA. Currently, there are 103 such airports (plus one heliport), as shown on the accompanying map. Your Chantilly Air scheduler will be pleased to help you locate an appropriate gateway airport.

All flights to DCA have to proceed via one of these gateway airports.  Flights from DCA can proceed directly to any airport.

For instance, if you plan a trip from Washington, DC to Boston-Bedford’s Hanscom airport (BED), operating the flight from and to DCA is an ideal solution, since we do not have to stop at a gateway airport that is not on your planned route of flight. You simply board the airplane at DCA for your outbound flight, and the same is true for your return flight to DCA.

If you plan a trip from Washington, DC to an airport that is not a gateway, DCA can still be a component of an optimal travel plan. We simply pick you up at DCA, and fly you to your destination. In this case, for the return flight, we suggest that we fly to Dulles, or another surrounding airport in the Washington, DC area. We can still fly you to DCA on the return flight, but that would involve stopping at a gateway airport to clear security, and we feel that this might delay your flight unnecessarily.

Your carry-on baggage on DCA flights is subject to the same security restrictions as it would be for any other Chantilly Air flight. Please note that those security restrictions are not as limiting as the list of prohibited items used by the airlines. For instance, your carry-on baggage may not contain items that may be used as weapons, but it may contain liquids over 3 ounces.

However, some prohibited items may simply be carried in your “checked” baggage. Checked baggage will be stored by the crew in an exterior baggage compartment to which you will not have access in flight. Depending on aircraft, the availability of exterior baggage compartment space may be limited. Your Chantilly Air scheduler will be happy to help you make the right choices about prohibited items in your baggage.

We have to submit an initial trip itinerary to TSA 24 hours before the flight’s departure. TSA uses the information we provide about passengers, crew, and aircraft to conduct a security check.

At TSA’s discretion, we may be able to make changes to the departure times within the last 24 hours before the originally scheduled departure. However, within the last 24 hours before the flight’s departure, we cannot add passengers to the itinerary, or change gateway or destination airports.

However, we can delete passengers from the passenger manifest up to departure time of the flight. If you are not certain whether a passenger in your party will or will not be traveling with you, it is best to ask us to list that passenger on the manifest. We can always delete—but not add—names on the passenger manifest.

When access to DCA was restored after the attacks of September 11, 2001, it was felt that the hijacking of aircraft was a threat specific to operations at DCA. Since general aviation aircraft generally do not have lockable cockpit doors, TSA requires that an Armed Security Officer (ASO) has to be on board each passenger flight to and from DCA, for the sole purpose of preventing unauthorized access to the flight deck.

Chantilly Air selects only highly-qualified and trained current or former law enforcement officers with a particular background in customer service and specific aviation experience as ASOs.