A new £2.7 billion airport in Australia has opened after more than a decade, and is predicted to serve up to 10 million passengers every year. Passengers will get their first chance to fly from the Western Sydney International Airport (WSI) on October 25. The project is Australia’s first major airport in more than 50 years. It reflects the federal government’s AUD$18 billion (£9.45 billion) investment in the Western Sydney region, which includes a future Sydney Metro Airport rail connection and significant road upgrades.
So far, only four airlines have announced their plans to operate out of WSI, including Qantas’ budget arm Jetstar. The airline will operate the airport’s first commercial passenger flight with an Airbus A320 set to jet off to the Gold Coast. It will operate up to 14 flights a week between WSI and Melbourne, four weekly flights to the Gold Coast and three weekly flights to Brisbane, ABC News reports.
The airport at Badgerys Creek, about 37 miles west of central Sydney, will not be subject to the 11pm-6am curfew that Sydney Airport at Mascot remains under. The curfew is in place due to tough noise regulations, limiting airline scheduling options relative to other major Australian cities like Melbourne.
Over 50 airlines fly in and out of Sydney Airport in Mascot, the vast majority being overseas carriers.
However, as Western Sydney has grown to become Australia’s third-largest economy and home to half of the city’s population, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said “it wasn’t a matter of if Sydney needed a new airport, but when”.
He said: “Fifteen years later this new airport is almost ready to open.
“I want to thank the tens of thousands of people who over the years planned, built and are now testing Western Sydney International Airport and the surrounding infrastructure right here in Western Sydney.”
Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, described the upcoming opening as a “big moment for Sydney” as it brought over 12,800 jobs. Half of them were created locally.
For international flights, Air New Zealand (AIR.NZ), opens new tab will start Auckland services on October 26 and Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI), opens new tab will launch daily services to the city-state on November 23.
