The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority did an about-face on Wednesday, voting tentatively to move ahead with construction of an aboveground Metro station at Washington Dulles International Airport, instead of an underground station as originally envisioned.

And while that may seem like a small detail to most Washingtonians, it means that Metrorail to Dulles airport and into Loudoun County is still on track — some would say miraculously — despite months of angry debate over how best to build and to fund it.