Portfolio — 10 June 2026

Infrastructure Minister Catherine King has announced that Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport will open to passengers on 25 October 2026, marking the end of a 15-year planning and construction process that the government is framing as the centrepiece of its near-$18 billion Western Sydney investment commitment [TA-260610-infras-923b06ecce52:m00AMR].

The curfew-free airport is designed to handle international, domestic and freight traffic for up to 10 million passengers annually, with capacity built in for further expansion as demand grows.

Jetstar will operate the inaugural commercial flight — to the Gold Coast on 25 October — and will schedule up to 14 weekly services to Melbourne, four to the Gold Coast and three to Brisbane [TA-260610-infras-923b06ecce52:m00AMR]. Qantas enters the schedule on 28 March 2027 with four weekly flights each to Brisbane and Melbourne, while freight operations begin earlier, on 26 July, with Qantas Freight following the next evening [TA-260610-infras-923b06ecce52:m00AMR].

The phased airline entry — Jetstar first, Qantas five months later — signals a deliberate ramp-up designed to build utilisation before the full-service offering is live.

The government's broader Western Sydney investment narrative frames the airport as one node in a connected infrastructure package: the future Sydney Metro Airport rail link, major road upgrades, and the recently opened M12 Motorway are all cited as components of the same $18 billion commitment. The media release also foregrounds local economic benefit, noting that construction created more than 12,800 jobs — roughly half filled by local workers — and directed over $500 million to more than 360 Western Sydney-based businesses.

This framing ties the airport announcement to employment and small-business themes alongside the core infrastructure story.