DENVER — United Airlines opened a new 150,000-square-foot building in Denver Thursday, expanding what it calls "the world's largest flight training center."
The new facility allows the company to add 12 more full-motion flight simulators and gives them the capacity to train up to 240 pilots per day, according to a Thursday news release from United.
The new, $145 million building is located in the Central Park neighborhood, spanning 23 acres, United said.
"As home to its fastest-growing hub, the airline has funneled nearly $1 billion in the past few years alone to further improve the customer experience at [Denver International Airport]," officials at United said.
The company said the new facility could lead to more than 370 new jobs.
United said it had already hired more than 300 pilots through the first two months of 2024 so far. It says it hired 2,300 pilots last year.
United expects further expansion of the United Flight Training Center in 2028, and hopes to have flight training capabilities in the next four years. The airline purchased two plots of undeveloped land near DIA last summer, according to the company's news release.
The opening of United's expanded flight training center was announced less than a week after a United flight from San Francisco to Boston made an emergency landing in Denver to address an issue with a slat on the wing of the plane.
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