In Australia, Sydney’s second airport blows some passengers off course

Sydney’s new multibillion-dollar airport has already confused some travellers, with passengers mistaking the new facility for the Australian city’s existing airport and even booking flights to the wrong side of the country.

Western Sydney International Airport, which opened at the weekend after decades of planning, is about 60km (37 miles) from the city centre, compared with just 8km for the existing Kingsford Smith Airport. The new airport operates around the clock, while most passenger flights at Kingsford Smith are banned between 11pm and 6am.

Two Swedish students, both aged 23, discovered the difference the hard way after flying back from a weekend trip to Melbourne. Having read “Sydney West” on their boarding passes, they assumed it referred to another terminal at the familiar airport, they told broadcaster ABC in remarks published on Monday.

It was only when they looked out of the window that they realised something was wrong. Their car was waiting at the other airport, almost an hour’s drive away.

A traveller from New Zealand also misunderstood his destination, believing he had booked a flight to Perth in Western Australia after seeing the word “Western” on his ticket.

By the time he realised his mistake, he was already heading to the new airport on Australia’s east coast. He took the mix-up in his stride, saying he was on holiday and could make the best of it.

The A$5.3 billion (US$3.7 billion) airport, under construction since 2018, is intended to ease pressure on Sydney’s overcrowded aviation infrastructure. A planned rail link to the city is not yet complete, leaving passengers reliant on buses and shuttle services.

Its first international flight, an Air New Zealand plane from Auckland, landed and soon afterwards flew out of the airport on Monday morning, launching a three-flights-a-week service to Sydney’s largely working-class western suburbs.

“It’s not every day you get to be part of opening a brand-new international airport,” Air New Zealand chief operations officer Kate Boyer said. “Western Sydney is home to more than 2.5 million people and it’s a further gateway for Australian visitors to discover everything our country has to offer.”

Qantas’ budget carrier Jetstar is now the main domestic carrier, flying to the Gold Coast, Melbourne and Brisbane. The airport says other international carriers are coming, including Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, Fiji Airways and VietJet.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the new airport marked a “wonderful new chapter” for Australia. It would also drive economic and jobs into western Sydney, an area often overshadowed by the city’s famed harbour and central business district, he said at the weekend.

“For too long, Sydney has looked towards the harbour and the CBD. What this does is turn it around to where people live, to where jobs occur, to where investment occurs in western Sydney.”