Fort Towson

Dulles (/ˈdʌlɪs/ DUL-iss) is an unincorporated area in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, and is part of the Washington metropolitan area. The headquarters of Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems and ODIN Technologies, as well as the former headquarters of MCI Inc. and AOL are located in Dulles. The National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington forecast office and the National Weather Service's Sterling Field Support Center are also both in Dulles.

Geography

Dulles covers roughly the southwestern third of Sterling, Virginia (another unincorporated community). The usage of Dulles as a community name began in the mid-1980s when Loudoun County economic development officer Pam Treadwell successfully lobbied[1] the United States Postal Service to allow Sterling businesses and residents to use Dulles as an alternative address. The USPS defines Dulles as an "acceptable" city name for the 20166 ZIP code, whose "recommended" city name is Sterling.[2] Dulles is also the city name for ZIP code 20189.[citation needed]

The addresses for shipping parcels to United States embassies and consulates, as well as their employees worldwide, are located in Dulles.[citation needed]

Transport

Washington Dulles International Airport is located partially in Dulles (although its postal address uses the Sterling name instead) and partially in Fairfax County. The community derives its name from the airport; the airport in turn takes its name from former U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles (1888–1959).

Economy

Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems has its headquarters on Warp Drive in Dulles.[3] AOL had its headquarters at 22000 AOL Way in Dulles.[4] In 2007, AOL announced that it would move its headquarters from Loudoun County to New York City, though it would continue to operate its Virginia offices.[5]

Before its dissolution, FLYi, Inc./Independence Air (originally Atlantic Coast Airlines) was headquartered in Dulles.[6][7] Prior to its dissolution, MAXjet Airways was headquartered on the grounds of Washington Dulles International Airport and in Dulles.[8] Cryptek was headquartered in Dulles before its acquisition in 2009.[citation needed]

Other companies have offices in Dulles, e.g., Harris IT Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Harris Corporation.[9]

Dulles Town Center, a large enclosed shopping mall, is also located in the northern part of Dulles.[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ Brubaker, Bill (December 13, 2004). "Dulles, Clearly On Tech's Radar". The Washington Post. p. E01. Retrieved April 5, 2008.
  2. ^ "ZIP Code Lookup - Find All Cities in a ZIP Code". United States Postal Service. Archived from the original on October 1, 2008. Retrieved April 9, 2008.
  3. ^ "Contact Information". Orbital Sciences Corporation. Archived from the original on January 19, 2010. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  4. ^ "Company Overview". AOL. Archived from the original on February 8, 2008. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  5. ^ Goldfarb, Zachary; Sam Diaz (September 18, 2007). "AOL Moving Executives, Headquarters to New York". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  6. ^ "Company Information". Atlantic Coast Airlines. Archived from the original on August 11, 2001. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  7. ^ "Independence Air, Inc". Businessweek. Archived from the original on September 24, 2012. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  8. ^ "Contact Us". MAXjet Airways. Archived from the original on February 18, 2007. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  9. ^ "Harris Corporation - Assured Communications Products, Systems and Services for Government and Commercial Customers Worldwide". Archived from the original on March 12, 2010. Retrieved March 25, 2010.

External links

  • Dulles South Online is an online portal for Dulles Region businesses, organizations and residents to post news, information, listings and events concerning the Dulles South Region, focusing specifically on economic, public policy and community growth information.