Western Sydney International Airport Opens With First Passenger Flight to Gold Coast

Western Sydney International Airport opened with its first passenger flight to the Gold Coast, completing a $5.6 billion project built over eight years. The airport has capacity for 10 million passengers and 1.8 million tonnes of cargo annually, ABC reported. The first flight may take an hour and 20 minutes.

Western Sydney International Airport Opens to Passengers

Matthew Hayes, a 20-year-old transport enthusiast, was one of the trial passengers who tested the airport's new systems two months ago, alongside 80-year-old Mount Druitt resident Kevin Appleby. "I used to go with my mother down to the site of the [Badgerys Creek] airport. Back then it was just paddocks and hills, and livestock grazing along the way," Hayes said. "My mum would tell me, 'One day, when you're older, this is going to be a whole airport.'"

Seven passenger-carrying airlines have signed up with WSI including Qantas, Jetstar, Air New Zealand and Qatar Airways, with flights to Doha, Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City already scheduled. Qantas ground workers at Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth airports will strike for 24 hours on Wednesday, targeting pay cuts, job losses and safety concerns, Mirage News reported.

How the Airport Reached Opening Day

Western Sydney International Airport opened to passengers on Sunday, featuring a permanent tribute to Nancy-Bird Walton, the first Australian woman to hold a commercial pilot's licence, ABC reported on October 22, 2026. The airport is named after her, and the tribute includes an artwork of her Gipsy Moth plane.

The Albanese Labor Government delivered state-of-the-art biosecurity equipment to the airport, including two 3D X-ray units and detector dogs, Mirage News reported on October 20, 2026. Days before opening, the airport announced its first lounge before passenger flights on October 25, an airline-agnostic space designed for business travelers with self-service kiosks, automated border control and next-generation security scanners, EIN Presswire reported on October 17, 2026.

Other Airports Expand Passenger Capacity

Ontario International Airport welcomed nearly 5.3 million passengers through September 2026, on pace for 7 million annually, with international traffic growing nearly 28% year-over-year, PR Newswire reported on October 22, 2026. Heathrow reported its busiest day ever with 272,000 passengers on 2 August and approved a £200m dividend, Insidermedia reported on October 22, 2026. Avinor warned that the new Bodø and Mo i Rana airports will cost an extra 1-1.5 billion NOK, making them 10% more expensive than planned, E24 reported on October 19, 2026.

What Comes Next for Western Sydney

Cargo flights have been taking to the skies since July, and the airport's 24-hour cargo precinct opened on 17 October 2026, marking the first operational stage of Australia's newest airport, Mirage News reported on July 29, 2026. A partnership with VietJet will launch discounted return flights to Ho Chi Minh City beginning January 2027, with services ramping up to three weekly flights by March 2027, The Australian reported on August 10, 2026.