United Airlines has opened its biggest in-flight training centre after spending US $32 million on doubling the size of its facility in Houston.
At a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by chief executive Scott Kirby, congresswoman Sheila Jackson and city mayor Sylvester Turner, the carrier unveiled the revamped centre, which it said included extra classrooms and training spaces, cabin and door trainers and "a state-of-the-art aquatic centre to practice safe evacuation of the plane in unlikely water landings".
United said the project is in keeping with expansion plans that include the hiring of 15,000 people, including 4,000 flight attendants, in 2023. In December 2022, the carrier announced the biggest order of widebody aircraft in US history.
"The best flight attendants in the industry deserve the best, most modern training facility in the country," said Kirby. "This expansion project is yet another example of an investment we made during the depths of the pandemic that will support our employees, further improve our ability to deliver great service and set United up for success in 2023 and beyond," the chief executive added.
"United continues to be a great partner and business leader in the city of Houston, connecting Houstonians to the world and investing in vital infrastructure projects that help enhance the travel experience for millions of travellers," said Turner.