Chicago-based United Airlines is growing its hub at Denver International Airport by hiring thousands of new employees and investing in its flight training center with a new Boeing 787 Dreamliner simulator. The move comes after the airline placed the largest aircraft order in airline history last December.
As the carrier plans to hire more than 1,500 Colorado natives by 2024, United has reportedly brought on 400 new hires in Denver. The airline said the expansion is part of its initiative to become Denver's largest private employer.
"We are only getting bigger"
United's Managing Director of Flight Training, George Gamaldi, spoke about the airline's growth in Denver to CBS News.
"United Airlines is the largest private employer in Denver with over 8,400 Denver employees and we are only getting bigger. In 2022 alone we hired more than 400 new employees that are based right here at the Flight Training Center."
United's Flight Training Center is located in the Central Park neighborhood of Denver. As part of the continued process of a significant expansion of its already massive facility, the airline recently welcomed a new flight simulator for pilots.
The 787 Dreamliner simulator is reportedly the newest on the market and was delivered and installed in Denver for nearly $25 million. As a result, new positions were created at the flight training center, according to CBS News.
"These devices are state of the art full flight simulators that we use to deliver training to our pilots," Gamaldi said.
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New aircraft on tap
The US Legacy carrier made history last December when it confirmed a firm order for 100 787 Dreamliner aircraft, which boosted its current order backlog to roughly 700 aircraft. Along with the firm order, United also placed 100 more options for additional 787s, including all three aircraft variants, the -8, -9, and -10.
"What that means for us is that between now and the end of the decade we will take delivery of a new airplane every three days. And that is a mix of Boeing 737's, Boeing 787's and Airbus A321's," Gamaldi said.
Amid the new simulator and aircraft deliveries, United still has many Airbus A350s on order. The longstanding order of 25 aircraft made in 2010 has not been canceled yet but has been adjusted several times.
In 2013 this order was changed to 35 A350-1000s, and then four years later, the airline changed it to 45 A350-900s. It could be likely that the airline will welcome the aircraft type along with other new planes within the next 10 years if it does not cancel the order.
Becoming the largest private employer
Between United's Denver hub and the flight training center, the airline said it plans to continue the expansion of being Denver's largest private employer, according to CBS News.
"(United is creating) a lot of high-quality careers with excellent benefits at United Airlines for the residents of Denver," Gamaldi said.
The airline just finished expanding its flight training facility at its hub in Houston. The $32 million renovations doubled the size of the facility, which will allow the carrier to provide training for thousands of additional flight attendants each year.
Source: CBS News