United Airlines has today announced that they have broken ground on a new $177 million Ground Service Equipment (GSE) facility, and has also opened a new state-of-the-art Technical Operations Training facility at Houston Intercontinental Airport (IAH).
On Tuesday (March 25, 2025), United Airlines announced that they have broken ground on a new $177 million, 140,000 square-foot Ground Service Equipment (GSE) facility, and have also opened a new Technical Operations Training facility at George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) in Houston, Texas. Since 2015, United has invested $3.5 billion to build and upgrade facilities at IAH. The IAH Terminal B Transformation, designed to accommodate 36 million future passengers, is scheduled to open in 2026.
In Tuesday’s announcement, United’s Vice President of Airport Operations, Phil Griffith, said,
“At United, we believe that investing in our people and our facilities is the key to maintaining our leadership in the aviation industry. With these new facilities, Ground Service Equipment Maintenance Facility and the Technical Operations Training Center, we are enhancing our ability to maintain a world-class fleet while empowering our employees with cutting-edge tools and training. This investment reflects our long-term vision for Houston as a critical hub for United's operations and our commitment to sustainability, efficiency, and growth.”
Also commenting on the new Houston facilities, United’s SVP – Technical Operations, Maria Deacon, added,
“By opening our Tech Ops Training Center, we are setting a new industry standard for real world and specialized training opportunities for United technicians. We’re also extremely pleased to break ground on a new GSE maintenance facility which will revolutionize our capacity to maintain our fleet of ground service equipment for decades to come.”
Overhead Rendering of United's New $177M Ground Service Equipment (GSE) Facility at IAH - Courtesy United Airlines/PRNewswire
United expects the new GSE facility to open in 2027, supporting the carrier’s fleet of over 1,800 ground service vehicles, while providing United’s over 130+ strong GSE maintenance team even more resources to perform critical tasks such as charging batteries, fabricating metal, and monitoring electronic controls. United’s GSE maintenance facility has been designed to meet LEED Silver certification and will double the size of the current facility, which was built 40 years ago, when IAH only had 37 percent of its current gates. Currently, United’s ground service equipment fleet at IAH includes 1,00 pieces of electric equipment (eGSE).
United’s new $16 million Tech Ops Training Center (TTC) will support the carrier’s plan to take delivery of hundreds of new aircraft by 2032. The 91,000 square-foot facility includes sheet metal and composite training shops, desktop simulators, and scenario-based engine maintenance and inspection trainings. The Training Center will also house a cutting-edge $6.3 million Move Team Facility, designed to centralize United’s Super Tug operations, which manages 15 Super Tugs across the airfield.
United is the largest airline in Houston, with over 14,000 team members and more than 500 daily departures. Since 2021, the carrier has invested over $32 billion worldwide, including billions in modern infrastructure, state-of-the-art technology, and nearly $10 billion in employee raises alone. In 2023, United added 2,100 people locally at IAH, and added over 600 new team members in 2024.
Source: United Airlines/PRNewswire