Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport has opened an expansion of its international Terminal D.
The new West Pier of the terminal has six gates for widebody jets, which can be converted to 10 gates accommodating narrowbodies.
Operations began on Oct. 22 with the arrival of an Avianca flight from San Salvador. United and British Airways were also on the Tuesday schedule. Most foreign airlines operating out of Bush Intercontinental will have access to the new gates, the airport said.
The 160,000-square-foot West Pier will house 16 restaurant and retail locations once all the venues are filled, along with a sensory room, a child's play area and a mother's room.
The exterior of the Terminal D West Pier. Photo Credit: Houston Airport System
Construction on the Terminal D expansion took nearly five years, beginning in November 2019 with the demolition of the airport's old Terminal C-North.
The expansion is one of three components of the $1.5 billion IAH Terminal Redevelopment program. A refresh of the remainder of the terminal was completed last year. A new international processing facility, supporting ticketing and baggage claim for Terminal D and United's international Terminal E, is slated to open in two phases next winter and next summer.
United, in partnership with Houston Airport System, is financing a $1.9 billion expansion of Terminal B.