US domestic carrier Southwest Airlines has unveiled a $125m new maintenance facility at William P. Hobby International Airport in Houston, Texas.

The new 240,000ft² facility is the airline’s largest maintenance complex across its operation.

In addition to offices, training facilities and warehouse space, the facility also features a 140,000ft² hangar.

Southwest Airlines’ new facility will enable close to 400 Houston-based technical employees to work on up to six 737 aircraft indoors at the same time. It also has space to accommodate up to eight aircraft outside the hangar bays.

Southwest Airlines chairman and CEO Gary Kelly said: “This state-of-the-art hangar will support our technical operations ream’s unwavering commitment to Safety and maintaining our fleet to the highest standards.

“I’m very proud of our hundreds of technical operations employees in Houston for the work they do every day to support our growing operation from Houston’s Hobby Airport, which includes almost 200 departures a day during peak seasons to nearly 70 destinations across the US, Latin America, and the Caribbean.”

The new facility will replace Southwest’s smaller technical operations facility at Hobby Airport and generate 5,000 local jobs.

The Dallas-based airline is currently investing in aircraft maintenance build-outs at Baltimore/Washington International Airport and Denver International Airport.

In addition to this, it is upgrading its maintenance facility at Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International Airport, including two other projects in Denver and Baltimore.

Mayor Sylvester Turner said: “Between the direct employment of 5,000 local residents, continued growth in flight activity, and this investment in infrastructure, the airline represents $3bn in economic impact for Houston each year, and that’s something that makes us proud and thankful.”