Denver Airport CEO Outlines International Network Ambitions

DENVER–The leaders of North America’s third-largest airport see expansion of international connectivity as key to their strategic vision.

“Our ambition is increased international service,” Phillip Washington, CEO of Denver International Airport (DEN), told Aviation Week on the sidelines of events commemorating the first Lufthansa Airbus A380 scheduled service to Denver on April 30. “One of the pillars of our strategic plan is increasing our international connections,” he said.

In summer 2024, Denver welcomed international services by Aer Lingus to Dublin and last fall Turkish Airlines opened a direct route to Istanbul. On May 1, United Airlines launched its seasonal service to Rome.

“We are telling airlines and countries that we can accommodate their flights here,” Washington said. “Our next (new) direct flight will likely be Dubai with Emirates. We are also looking at the continent of Africa, to Ethiopia, with a direct flight.” Also on the list of priorities are flights from Denver to New Zealand and Amsterdam.

“Currently we have between 24 and 30 international routes from Denver,” Washington said. “Denver is the largest airport in the world in terms of land, except for one in Saudi Arabia … We also have the longest runway in North America, which is 16,000 ft. long. We can handle any aircraft in the world.”

By far the largest carrier in Denver is Star Alliance member United, offering a market share of around 50%. Southwest Airlines follows with about 35% and Denver-based ULCC Frontier Airlines is third. Washington said Denver has taken over from Chicago O’Hare as United’s main hub for North America. “We have taken over the hub from Southwest from Dallas as well,” he added.

Denver is the third-busiest airport in North America behind Atlanta and Dallas and is gaining on Dallas, Washington said. “We have unlimited space to grow.” the CEO said. “We are re-imagining this airport to welcome even greater numbers. Our forecast is for 120 million passengers plus in 2045. We had 82.3 million who come through this airport last year.”

Meanwhile, Denver is working on an extension of Concourse C with 11 more gates. “We finished 39 (additional) new gates at this airport and that project was done ahead of schedule, on budget,” Washington said. A seventh runway could be built. “We have a capacity for a total of 12 runways,” the CEO said.

In total, the airport is implementing a $12 billion capital improvement plan over10 years to become a “Gateway to the West” for more international airlines. In pursuit of that goal, Denver offers incentives to airlines, depending on the destination. “This policy is very effective to attract airlines here,” Washington said, adding that airport management follows metrics to ensure that growth stays within the airport’s cost planning. While they keep promoting Denver as a destination, every project must be on budget and ahead of schedule. “The airlines help pay for the project through their charges. If you have a project that will not be managed, the airlines lose money,” Washington said.