An opening date for a new Sydney airport welcoming domestic and international passengers has been announced.
Western Sydney International Airport (WSI) will begin departures and arrivals from the airport on 25 October, when Jetstar will will operate the airport’s inaugural passenger flight. The airline’s flight JQ362 on an Airbus A320 is scheduled set to take off from WSI flying to the Gold Coast at 11am that day.
Located in Badgerys Creek, 44km west of Sydney’s central business district (CBD) the new airport will be the city’s only 24-hour domestic, international and freight airport. It is expected to make the most of avoiding the strict 11pm-6am curfew Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) currently operates under. The new airport is around 60 minutes drive from the central city.
With the opening announcement, four airlines have confirmed they will operate out of the new airport – Jetstar, Air New Zealand, Qantas and Singapore Airlines.
Jetstar 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.
From 26 October 2026, Air New Zealand will provide another trans-Tasman link, with three weekly flights between WSI to Auckland. Flights will depart Monday, Wednesday and Friday, leaving NZ at 6:10am (Auckland time) and departing the new airport in Sydney at 9:05am (Sydney time). Air NZ says the flight time will be around 3 hours and 35 minutes.
Qantas operations will begin on 28 March 2027, with four flights per week to both Melbourne and Brisbane.
Singapore Airlines’ daily flights from WSI to Singapore will kick off from 23 November 2026, departing each evening.
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said a study proved the need for the new airport back in 2011.
“I said at the time, it wasn’t ‘a matter of if Sydney needed a new airport, but when,” the PM shared as the opening date was revealed. “15 years later, this new airport is almost ready to open.”
The airport will open with a single runway, with facilities able to to handle up to 10 million passengers a year.
“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,” Albanese said.
Transport to and from the airport is expected to be via private car, taxi, rideshare or free bus to a local train station, before a metro line connects the airport to city’s rail network, expected to open in 2027.
