Airports to open Western Sydney International Airport or Nancy-Bird Walton Airport as it will be officially known is set to open its gates to commercial passengers on 25 October. A new way to fly Western Sydney International Airport will be a secondary airport to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, expanding domestic, international, and freight capacity.
The new airport will provide travellers with an additional source of departures to popular destinations such as Melbourne, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast. But the main concern for passengers is, of course, whether, or not they will get cheaper flights from the new airport.
Western Sydney International Airport is located near Badgerys Creek. The airport is designed to cater to the increased population and business activity in western Sydney and to provide relief to the current airport.
Unlike Kingsford Smith, which operates under a strict overnight noise curfew, the new airport is designed for round-the-clock operations. This gives airlines greater flexibility when scheduling flights and could create additional opportunities for international connections and overnight freight services.
Jetstar will be the first carrier for passenger flights, with a flight to the Gold Coast departing on October 25, and will also offer service to Melbourne and Brisbane. Air New Zealand will operate Auckland flights starting October 26, followed by Singapore Airlines to Singapore commencing on November 23.
Other announced airlines include Fiji Airways and VietJet Air, although some international routes will begin later. This means the airport’s initial network will expand progressively, rather than offering every destination from the first day.
Returning flights with Jetstar from western Sydney international to Melbourne Tullamarine airport were advertised at approximately A$187 versus A$258 from Kingsford Smith. That was A$71 cheaper going out of the western Sydney International airport.
For the Gold Coast route there was also a saving to be made. The lowest return from the Western Sydney Airport was listed at around A$131, as against A$192 from Kingsford Smith Airport. Still, the flights offered had different departure and return times so this fare may not be suitable for everyone.
Brisbane was a different story. Return prices from Western Sydney were from around $236, while from Kingsford Smith they started at $207 in the comparison.
Clearly from these figures that any traveller who is planning to travel to the new airport needs to compare real day of travel flight times and the condition of the baggage they receive not just assume that the new airport will always be cheaper.
Find and Book Western Sydney International Savers and business parking introductory rates for long stay parking start at A$15 per day, saver parking A$29 per day, premium parking A$49 per day Online bookings could include discounts, based on terms and conditions.
When comparing middle range parking for a sample trip from 1 December to 12 December, parking at Western Sydney is A$147 and A$213.40 at Kingsford Smith’s domestic terminal or A$248.80 at the international.
This equates to A$66.40 saving on domestic parking, and A$101.80 saving on international parking. The parking rates listed are based on the parking product and initial offers, and exclude fuel and road tolls.