How United Airlines' Denver hub got to 700 flights
United Airlines has big plans for its hub at Denver International Airport, with more flights and the gates to support them coming during the next few years.
An updated lease between the Chicago-based carrier and Denver will give United 24 more gates for a total of 90 at the airport by 2022. The agreement was approved by the Denver City Council in Jan. 21, paving the way for the airline's continued growth in the Mile High City.
But growth in Denver by United -- or other airlines — was not always a foregone conclusion. For United, the journey has been up and down since it first established its hub in 1982 to committing to the new Denver International (DEN) that opened in 1995. Another series of cuts came after the 2008 credit crunch and recession, now followed by the current growth spurt.
"[I] can remember how contentious... it was to get to that initial commitment for this airport and to see the growth that United has had as a result," said Denver Councilman Kevin Flynn at a committee hearing on Jan. 8. Flynn was a reporter at the Rocky Mountain News in the early 1990s when United was negotiating its first lease at Denver International.
"The mayor had a line in the sand that said 'if we don't have a commitment by this date you're getting 20 gates and that's it,' and here we are today with 90," said Flynn.
Sign up for the free daily TPG newsletter for more airline news!
Hub spree
United was already a significant player at Denver's former Stapleton International Airport when it established its hub there in 1982. That year, according to Air Transport World (ATW) in November 1986, the Chicago-based carrier began a "major build up" in Denver that turned the city into a three-hub town with Continental Airlines, the first (and now-defunct) Frontier Airlines, and United.
Denver was at the epicenter of U.S. airlines' larger shift towards hub-and-spoke networks. This occurred after the 1978 deregulation of the industry that allowed carriers to fly where they wanted, when they wanted. Airlines quickly learned that they could fly more places, more frequently if they concentrated operations in "hubs," or airports where a large number of routes converge to create multiple connecting opportunities.
Maps covered with multi-stop routes quickly disappeared as a hub-building spree took place across the U.S. Many of the major connecting complexes travelers still use today were established then, including American's Charlotte (CLT) and Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) hubs, and Delta Air Lines' hubs in Detroit (DTW) and Salt Lake City (SLC).
Denver's location at crossroads of most air routes across the U.S. made it "one of the country's most important, and competitive, airline markets," analysts told ATW in 1986. That boon was also Stapleton's downfall, which by the late 1980s was known for congestion. Enter Denver International.
Related: United Airlines plans largest-ever Denver hub
New airport
Work on Denver International began, relatively quietly, in September 1989. The quiet kick off was, in part, due to the fact that the city lacked a commitment from either of its two hub carriers at the time — Continental and United (the first Frontier had shut down in 1986) — on how to pay for the facility, according to reports at the time by both the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News.
United and the city went back-and-forth over a lease at the new airport. While that went on, Continental swooped in and secured Concourse A — including construction of a bridge to the terminal —for its own hub. United ultimately committed to 42 gates on Concourse B in June 1991.
But by the time Denver International opened in February 1995, United was the city's sole hub carrier. Continental had closed its Denver hub at the end of October 1994, and the second Frontier Airlines was still a nascent start up that served just a handful of routes at the time. Southwest Airlines, the airport's second largest carrier today, briefly flew to Stapleton in the mid-1980s and would not return to Denver for another 11 years.
United's footprint in Denver waxed and waned over the next 15 years. The airline expanded to Concourse A in 1999, only to return those gates to the city in 2007. In 2009, it even gave up several gates on Concourse B to Continental and US Airways amid an industry-wide downturn.
United and Continental merged in 2010, but it was not until 2014 when the airline began to grow again in Denver, Cirium schedules show. It took another five years, and a change in leadership at United, for Denver to come to the forefront of the carrier's domestic network.
Since 2018, United has accelerated domestic growth with a focus on its mid-continent hubs in Chicago (ORD), Denver and Houston (IAH) — part of an effort to recapture what its executives call its "natural share" of the U.S. market.
That growth has seen the airline add more than a hundred daily flights from Denver and announce multiple new routes. This year, new routes will be added to Dodge City, Kansas (DDC), Nassau (NAS) in the Bahamas, and Santa Maria, California (SMX), among others.
"We have every intention to be the top carrier and growing in [Denver] airport to its full potential," Steve Jaquith, the head of United's Denver hub, said at a Denver City Council committee hearing on Jan. 8. He, and other airline executives, emphasized that with the additional gates, United aims to expand its Denver hub to its largest-size ever with more than 700 departures on peak days in five years.
Related: United Airlines plans more gates, new clubs at growing Denver hub
View this post on Instagram
Timeline (number of United departures)
1982: United establishes Denver hub
1989: Construction of Denver International begins (184 departures, Denver Post)
1991: United commits to gates on Concourse B at Denver International (190 departures, Rocky Mountain News)
1994: Continental closes Denver hub (270 departures, Denver Post)
1995: Denver International opens (300 departures, Denver Post)
1999: United expands to Concourse A (314 departures, Denver Post)
2007: United exits Concourse A (450 departures, Cirium)
2009: United leases gates on Concourse B to Continental, US Airways (440 departures, Cirium)
2010: United and Continental merge (420 departures, Cirium)
2018: United accelerates Denver growth under mid-continent hub growth strategy (465 departures, Cirium)
2020: United seeks 24 additional gates in Concourses A and B at Denver International (about 550 departures, United)
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees