SYDNEY, Aug 27 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- The Australian government said on Tuesday Singapore Airlines has become the first overseas-based airline to confirm it will operate out of the new Western Sydney International Airport (WSI) when it opens in 2026.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Transport Minister Catherine King announced that Singapore Airlines has confirmed its intention to operate from the airport under a deal they said would connect western Sydney to the world.
"It's wonderful that Singapore Airlines, one of the world's best, is the first international airline to choose Western Sydney Airport as one of its bases it comes to," Albanese said at a press conference, reported Xinhua.
"By having Singapore Airlines as the first international airline to commit from overseas to use this airport, what it will do is give direct access into all those markets that Singapore Airlines flies to in that wonderful hub that is there at Changi Airport," he said.
According to the government, the airport at Badgerys Creek -- approximately 40 km west of Sydney Airport -- will service 10 million passengers a year when it opens with one runway in 2026, with the capacity to grow to cater to more than 80 million passengers per year by 2060.
Albanese said that more than 80 per cent of construction on the 5.3 billion Australian dollar (US$3.5 billion) project is now complete, and the airport is on track to open in 2026 -- eight years after works began.
King said in a statement that the commercial agreement with Singapore Airlines recognises WSI's status as a world-class international airport and gateway to Asia.
Unlike Sydney Airport, which operates with a government-mandated curfew between 11 pm and 6 am every day, the WSI will operate 24 hours a day.
Its 3.7-km runway will be able to accommodate aircraft as big as the Airbus A380. A second parallel runway is planned to be built around 2050.
Qantas and its budget offshoot Jetstar in June 2023 announced plans to base up to 15 domestic aircraft at the new airport within a year of its opening.
-- BERNAMA-XINHUA
