The expanded campus now includes nearly 700,000 square feet of training space across eight buildings and a total of 86 CAE training devices, including 52 full-motion flight simulators and 34 fixed training devices. United says the facility can now train as many as 860 pilots per day and conduct more than 32,000 training events annually.
A Massive Simulator Operation in Denver
United’s Denver Flight Training Center is located in the Central Park neighborhood on the site of the former Stapleton Airport complex.
The facility covers about 22 acres and serves as the airline’s sole training center for nearly 18,000 active pilots, as well as every newly hired United pilot.
Pilots use the center for initial qualification, aircraft transition training and recurrent training.
United says its pilots return to Denver for simulator training every nine months to maintain their qualifications.
The facility operates 24 hours a day for 362 days each year.
That level of activity gives Denver something most cities never see: a miniature airline operation where hundreds of pilots may spend the day flying aircraft without ever leaving the building.
52 Full-Motion Simulators
The centerpiece of the campus is its collection of 52 full-motion flight simulators.
These devices reproduce the cockpits, systems, handling and motion cues of United aircraft while allowing instructors to create situations that would be impractical or unsafe to reproduce in an actual airplane.
Pilots can practice engine failures, rejected takeoffs, severe weather, hydraulic problems, electrical failures and other abnormal scenarios while remaining safely on the ground.
Another 34 fixed training devices supplement the full-motion simulators and allow crews to practice procedures, cockpit flows, avionics and systems without occupying one of the more complex motion platforms.
For anyone familiar with home flight simulation, the scale is difficult to overstate.
A serious home cockpit might reproduce one aircraft.
United has enough professional training equipment in Denver to keep dozens of crews flying simultaneously around the clock.
40 New CAE Training Devices Since 2022
The newly completed phase represents several years of expansion.
United and CAE say 40 new training devices have been added since 2022, combining full-motion simulators with fixed training equipment.
The project included a new building that opened in 2024 and represented an investment of more than $145 million.
United says that expansion alone created more than 300 new jobs.
CAE President and CEO Matthew Bromberg said the expansion builds on a partnership between the companies stretching back more than four decades.
Nearly 18,000 Pilots Depend on the Center
United has expanded rapidly in recent years, and the training center plays a central role in supporting that growth.
Since launching its United Next growth strategy in 2021, the airline says it has hired more than 9,500 pilots. United had hired another 700 pilots so far in 2026 when it announced completion of the expansion and plans to hire hundreds more before the end of the year.
Every one of those pilots eventually passes through Denver.
The campus supports initial qualification for new hires, recurrent training for current pilots and training when crews move between different aircraft types or positions.
That makes simulator capacity a very real operational issue.
An airline can purchase more aircraft, open new routes and hire more pilots, but those pilots still have to be trained and qualified before they can operate scheduled flights.
Training Up to 860 Pilots Every Day
The expanded facility is now capable of training up to 860 pilots every day.
United estimates it can conduct more than 32,000 training events per year.
A training event might include a simulator session, evaluation, systems lesson or another required component of pilot qualification.
The scale is particularly impressive when the motion simulators are considered individually.
Each one represents a highly specialized aircraft cockpit surrounded by visual systems, motion hardware and computer equipment designed to reproduce the behavior of a real aircraft closely enough for FAA-approved training.
Professional full-flight simulators are also significantly different from even the most elaborate enthusiast cockpit.
Pilots can complete portions of their required aircraft qualification entirely in these devices because regulators recognize them as approved training platforms.
The Center Has Been Training Pilots Since the Stapleton Era
The Denver facility is not new.
Its roots stretch back almost six decades.
The original training center was constructed between 1966 and 1968 as part of the former Stapleton Airport complex and has served as United’s primary pilot training facility ever since.
United publicly showcased the modernized campus in 2018, when it already housed more than 30 full-flight simulators.
The latest expansion brings that number to 52.
Since 2016, United says it has invested approximately $370 million in the Denver Flight Training Center.
More Than 1,600 Employees Work at the Facility
The center is not staffed only by pilots and instructors.
More than 1,600 United employees work at the Denver campus across 24 different departments.
Those positions include:
- Flight instructors
- Pilot evaluators
- Training schedulers
- Pilot hiring staff
- Human resources
- Flight standards personnel
- Simulator and technical support roles
United employs more than 11,400 people in the Denver area overall.
The training center also creates a secondary economic impact through the constant flow of pilots traveling to Denver.
United says it spent nearly $40 million on Denver hotel rooms for pilots attending training in 2025, with that figure expected to approach $50 million in 2026.
Phase Two Is Already Planned
United is not finished expanding.
In July 2026, the Denver City Council approved rezoning for two parcels of undeveloped land the airline purchased near Denver International Airport in 2023.
United has already begun formal site planning for a second training facility on that property.
Construction is expected to begin in 2027, with the new facility becoming operational around 2030.
The future campus will operate alongside the existing Central Park facility rather than replacing it.
That means United’s Denver simulator footprint is likely to grow considerably beyond the current 86 training devices.
Denver Is United’s Fastest-Growing Hub
The training investment also reflects United’s broader commitment to Denver.
United describes Denver as its fastest-growing hub and says it has invested nearly $1 billion at Denver International Airport since 2021.
That investment includes new gates, expanded United Club facilities and a redesigned check-in lobby.
During summer 2026, United was operating an average of approximately 570 daily departures from Denver, serving more than 200 destinations, including more than 20 international cities.
The airline hired more than 1,400 employees in Denver during 2025 and said it planned to add another 1,300 in 2026.
Where Real-World Flight Simulation Happens at Scale
For flight-simulation enthusiasts, the Denver facility offers a fascinating look at the professional end of the hobby’s underlying technology.
Home simulators increasingly reproduce realistic aircraft systems, navigation, weather and cockpit procedures.
Professional airline simulators take those ideas several steps further.
Their purpose is not simply immersion.
They must behave accurately enough that pilots can be evaluated on emergency procedures, aircraft handling and crew coordination without placing a real airplane or passengers at risk.
A pilot can experience an engine failure just after V1, lose electrical systems in poor weather or practice an autoland in near-zero visibility, and the instructor can reset the aircraft for another attempt within minutes.
No damaged aircraft.
No fuel burned.
No runway closed.
Just another simulator session on the schedule.
Denver Becomes an Even Bigger Center for Aviation Training
United’s latest expansion makes Denver more than one of the airline’s largest hubs.
It also makes the city one of the most important airline pilot training locations in the world.
With nearly 700,000 square feet of training space, 86 CAE devices and the ability to accommodate up to 860 pilots every day, the scale of the operation rivals many airports.
And United is already preparing to build more.
For the thousands of pilots who pass through the facility every year, Denver may be the one United destination where the most important flight of the day never leaves the ground.
