Virginia-Based Facility Slated to Open in 2025

United Airlines recently began construction of its new $16 million, 20,000-square-foot Inflight Training Center in Fairfax County, Virginia. The facility is slated to open in 2025, providing safety and service exercises for 650 flight attendants per month.

The training center is located near the airline’s hub at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD). It will house classrooms, cabin and door training devices, and a mock fuselage for evacuation practice. This aims to make flight attendants more efficient in the case of an actual emergency.

Flight attendants supporting operations at Washington Dulles International Airport, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) will be able to utilize the new training facility.

“At United, we have the industry’s best flight attendants, and we’re thrilled to be opening a new best-in-class facility in support of their ongoing training right in the backyard of our Washington Dulles hub,” commented John Slater, Senior Vice President of Inflight Services at United. “This new training center is yet another step in our long-term investment in our people and our commitment to growth here in the Greater Washington region.”

The Fairfax County center follows close behind last year’s Houston training facility upgrade. This project, which ran the airline nearly $32 million, expanded the building’s size to 56,000 square feet and installed a 125,000-gallon pool, an auditorium, and other renovations.

“Not only will this be beneficial to the growing regional flight attendant workforce but for the overall growth of air travel to and from the Greater Washington region,” expressed Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeffrey McKay. “The national and global connectivity that United provides with its more than 250 daily flights from the Washington Dulles International Airport is vital to our local and regional economic vitality.”

The new facility is expected to become operational in 2025.

FMI: www.united.com