Delta launches first-of-its-kind pilot training facility in Salt Lake City

SALT LAKE CITY — Delta Air Lines is opening a trailblazing pilot training facility in Salt Lake City.

Delta said the training facility was a $50 million investment, and on Tuesday, chief of operations and president of Delta TechOps John Laughter explained how it would pioneer the company’s pilot training in the Mountain West.

Once complete, the 50,000-square-foot facility will host four simulators in total — with two already live and operational now. The third simulator is scheduled to be installed in February.

In addition to the simulation bays, the facility contains seven classrooms for pilots in training and other Delta teams, as well as 10 pilot briefing rooms. Laughter said the facility also has room to expand on the other side, making it a plausible place for long-term training operations.

Bigger than its square footage or price tag, laughter said the facility will offer a sense of “great quality of life” for pilots in the Mountain West, too.  Laughter said of the 37 simulators Delta has in total, the four in Salt Lake City are the only ones that aren’t located at Delta’s headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. This was strategic, and the Salt Lake City destination offered a central place for pilots to utilize, meaning they would no longer have to fly to Atlanta to train.

“This is about our commitment to quality pilot training, but it’s also about our great partnership with Salt Lake City and the state of Utah and we wouldn’t be here without that partnership,” he said.

Delta further expects the training facility to positively impact Utah’s economy, as it plans to spend $100,000 monthly on hotel rooms for the roughly 350 pilots expected to visit each month in 2025.

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Contributing: Karah Brackin, KSL TV