{"id":42065,"date":"2026-04-06T05:07:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T21:07:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=42065"},"modified":"2026-04-06T05:07:37","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T21:07:37","slug":"western-sydney-airport-offers-new-gateway-to-singapore-but-travellers-face-long-city-commute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=42065","title":{"rendered":"Western Sydney airport offers new gateway to Singapore, but travellers face long city commute"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\"><span class=\"dateline\">SYDNEY<\/span> <!-- -->\u2013<!-- --> Singapore Airlines (SIA) became the first airline to start selling tickets for flights into and out of Western Sydney International Airport,<!-- --> <!-- -->but passengers using the upcoming airport will face limited connectivity to the city centre for now. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The airline <a href=\"https:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\/singapore\/transport\/sia-to-start-daily-flights-to-new-western-sydney-international-airport-from-november?ref=inline-article\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" class=\"gap-x-04 items-center inline text-primary-60 select-auto\" aria-label=\"link\" target=\"_blank\" data-testid=\"custom-link\"><span class=\"font-body-baseline-regular inline\" data-testid=\"paragraph-test-id\">started selling tickets on March 25<\/span><\/a> for a daily service between the airport and Changi Airport, starting with the first flight from Singapore on Nov 23.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The A$5.3 billion (S$4.7 billion) airport \u2013 which will be Sydney\u2019s second international airport \u2013 is due to open in late October.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">SIA flights will take advantage of the 24-hour operations at the new airport, with flights leaving for Singapore at <!-- -->11.55pm.<!-- --> The Singapore-Sydney flight departs at <!-- -->11.30am.<!-- --> The introductory fares for return flights from Singapore start at <!-- -->$806<!-- -->. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The city\u2019s existing international airport, Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, has a curfew between 11pm and 6am to reduce noise for surrounding neighbourhoods. Flights cannot take off or land during this time, except for emergencies. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Aviation expert Rico Merkert, a professor at the University of Sydney, told The Straits Times that SIA flights from the new airport could appeal to the large South Asian population living in western Sydney that could use Singapore for transit. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">He said the new airport, which is 44km from the Central Business District (CBD), is expected to largely cater to low-cost carriers, while Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, which is about 8km from the CBD, is likely to appeal to premium carriers and business passengers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cI was surprised to see Singapore Airlines going in first,\u201d he said. \u201cI thought of Singapore Airlines as a full-service carrier that would like to stick to Kingsford Smith, which is bringing people into the CBD, including business travellers. It may see potential in connecting people to Singapore and to other markets in Asia such as India.\u201d <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">SIA said on its website that the new flights, which add to its four daily flights to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, will offer passengers \u201cmore choices and flexibility\u201d. The airline will operate Airbus A350-900 aircraft out of Western Sydney International Airport.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Mr Dai Haoyu, the airline\u2019s senior vice-president of marketing planning, said on March 25 that the new services will strengthen connectivity for its passengers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cWestern Sydney\u2019s late-night departure capacity will enable a seamless travel journey and connections through Singapore Changi Airport, to more than 130 global destinations served by the SIA Group,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The move to open a new airport in Sydney followed concerns that Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, which is permitted to handle only 80 flights an hour to limit noise for surrounding residents, will struggle to meet the growing aviation demands of the city of 5.6 million. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">More than 42 million passengers \u2013 17 million international and 25 million domestic passengers \u2013 travelled through<!-- --> the airport<!-- --> in 2025, but the federal government expects demand for aviation in Sydney to double over the next 20 years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Western Sydney International Airport will be able to cater to 10 million passengers a year when it opens, but could eventually <!-- -->handle<!-- --> up to 82 <!-- -->million<!-- --> annually. It has a single 3.7km runway but is expected to add a second in the 2050s as demand grows. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Qantas, Australia\u2019s national carrier, plans to use the airport and base 15 aircraft there. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The other confirmed airlines are Air New Zealand and Qantas\u2019 low-cost subsidiary, Jetstar. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Freight services will also use the airport and are due to start operations in July.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Air New Zealand on April 2 became the second airline to start selling tickets for flights to and from the airport. It will operate three weekly services from Oct 26 between Sydney and Auckland \u2013 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Air New Zealand general manager of short haul and domestic Lucy Hall said in a statement: \u201cFlying directly into Western Sydney opens up a catchment of more than 2.5 million people, including a significant New Zealand community.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Western Sydney International Airport is in a fast-growing area of Sydney, but it is at least a 45-minute drive \u2013 with one-way tolls of about A$17 \u2013 to the city centre. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"portrait inline-media-wrapper\" style=\"--aspect-article-portrait:960 \/ 944\" data-testid=\"inline-media-test-id\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col items-start relative w-fit\"><picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cassette.sphdigital.com.sg\/image\/straitstimes\/857641e32f30d95201ae32d73f4ddc1c4d5edf3b811937a8d4d326ff89111295?w=480\"\/><source media=\"(min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 720px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cassette.sphdigital.com.sg\/image\/straitstimes\/857641e32f30d95201ae32d73f4ddc1c4d5edf3b811937a8d4d326ff89111295?w=720\"\/><source media=\"(min-width: 721px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cassette.sphdigital.com.sg\/image\/straitstimes\/857641e32f30d95201ae32d73f4ddc1c4d5edf3b811937a8d4d326ff89111295?w=900\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cassette.sphdigital.com.sg\/image\/straitstimes\/857641e32f30d95201ae32d73f4ddc1c4d5edf3b811937a8d4d326ff89111295\" alt=\"\" class=\"aspect-portrait flex items-start shrink-0 portrait article-portrait object-contain mobile:w-auto tablet:w-auto\" data-testid=\"image-test-id\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">The airport will have two rail stations but construction has been delayed and they are reportedly not due to open until at least December 2027. In the meantime, other public transport options include new bus routes to surrounding bus and train hubs in suburbs such as Penrith and Liverpool, and a free 30-minute shuttle ride to the nearest train station. <\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Professor Merkert said he believed the airport\u2019s lack of a curfew would give international carriers <!-- -->more<!-- --> flexibility to time <!-- -->their<!-- --> flights around connections abroad and would help freighters, which would be able to land or depart at all hours.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cAt the moment, due to what is happening in the Middle East, there is a risk that (the new airport) will be loss-making due to extreme jet fuel price volatility, likely jet fuel availability issues, and a looming recession,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cLong term, though, there is enough demand in the Sydney basin&#8230; to sustain a commercially viable second airport,\u201d he added, noting the airport\u2019s focus on low-cost carriers, <!-- -->demand<!-- --> from visiting family and friends in South Asia, and freight operations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King told ABC Radio on March 25 that the airport\u2019s 24-hour operations will be welcomed by passengers who like to fly on overnight international flights.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-body-baseline-regular text-primary\" data-testid=\"article-paragraph-annotation-test-id\">\u201cA lot of people do like to be able to travel, get on a plane, get to sleep, wake up and you are actually at your destination the next morning,\u201d she said.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\/asia\/australianz\/singapore-airlines-first-to-sell-tickets-to-new-western-sydney-airport-that-opens-in-october\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article At Source <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SYDNEY \u2013 Singapore Airlines (SIA) became the first airline to start selling tickets for flights into and out of Western Sydney International Airport, but passengers&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42066,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42065","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=42065"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42065\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/42066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=42065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=42065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=42065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}