WESTERN SYDNEY AIRPORT: Finally an opening date, and Jetstar gets first dibs

Western Sydney International Airport will welcome its first paying passengers on Sunday, 25 October 2026, with Jetstar being the first commercial passenger carrier off the tarmac.

The inaugural flight from Western Sydney International, officially the Nancy-Bird Walton Airport and known by the code WSI, will be a Jetstar flight, JQ362, to the Gold Coast, scheduled to depart at 11 am.

The opening date, first reported by the SMH, also establishes the running order for the airlines that have committed to Sydney’s second major airport.

The Airline rollout

Here is a summary table of the way the initial rollout, currently planned, will work. Jetstar, in terms of flights, will be the airport’s most ardent customer, with Virgin Australia, currently not even in the hangars.

Airline	First service	Initial routes	Frequency
Jetstar	25 October 2026	Melbourne, Brisbane and Gold Coast	21 flights weekly
Air New Zealand	26 October 2026	Auckland	Three return flights weekly
Singapore Airlines	23 November 2026	Singapore	Daily
QantasLink	28 March 2027	Melbourne and Brisbane	Four flights weekly to each city

Jetstar starts the show on 25 October

Jetstar will be operating 21 flights a week across three domestic routes. Initially, the schedule comprises 14 weekly services to Melbourne, four to the Gold Coast and three to Brisbane.

That gives the airport a domestic network from day one, a boon for residents of Western Sydney who currently face a long and often unpredictable journey to Sydney Airport at Mascot.

Jetstar and Qantas were the first passenger airlines to sign commercial agreements with Western Sydney Airport back in 2023. At the time, the Qantas Group foreshadowed basing up to 15 aircraft at WSI in its first year. 10 Jetstar aircraft and five for Qantas.

The launch operation is much smaller than originally envisioned.

Air New Zealand one day later

The New Zealand flag carrier will operate WSI’s first scheduled international route on Monday, 26 October, connecting Western Sydney with Auckland.

The airline will fly three return services each week, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, using Airbus A320 or A321 aircraft.

Flights are scheduled to leave Auckland at about 6.05 am and arrive at WSI at 7.50 am. The return service will depart from Western Sydney at 9 am and arrive in Auckland at 2.15pm.

Western Sydney has a large New Zealand-born population, while Auckland provides onward connections across Air New Zealand’s domestic and Pacific network.

Singapore Airlines for long-haul

Singapore Airlines will become WSI’s first long-haul international carrier when daily flights to Singapore begin on 23 November 2026.

The airline plans to use a two-class Airbus A350-900, with Economy and Business Class cabins. The outgoing flight is overnight, and the incoming flight is a daytime adventure.

The Western Sydney departure is scheduled for 11.55 pm, arriving at Singapore Changi at 5 am the following morning. The return flight will leave Singapore at 11.30 am and arrive at WSI at 10.20 pm.

Those times make full use of WSI’s most important commercial advantage. Unlike Sydney Airport at Mascot, Western Sydney International will operate 24 hours without a night-time curfew.

The late departure should also provide useful connections through Singapore to destinations across Asia, Europe and Africa, although arriving back in Western Sydney after 10 pm will test the airport’s ground-transport arrangements.

Qantas passengers must wait until March 2027

From 28 March 2027, the initial QantasLink operation will offer four weekly flights to Melbourne and four to Brisbane, using Alliance Airlines-operated Embraer E190 regional jets. Not really an impressive start for Qantas, given they initially proposed five Qantas aircraft.

This means the opening months will be led by Jetstar, with Qantas sticking like glue to Mascot.

Qantas Freight will arrive earlier, taking advantage of WSI’s round-the-clock cargo precinct and the ability to operate overnight without the restrictions applying at Sydney Airport.

AWOL Virgin Australia

Virgin Australia has yet to commit to Western Sydney Airport. That leaves the Qantas Group dominating the domestic field at WSI.

Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad have also been courted, but none has announced passenger services. Nor has Singapore Airlines’ low-cost subsidiary Scoot.

More airlines and routes are almost certain to follow if the first services perform well.

Getting there could be the difficult bit

Western Sydney International sits at Badgerys Creek, about 44 kilometres west of Sydney’s CBD. The new M12 motorway will provide road access, while bus connections are planned to surrounding centres and St Mary’s railway station. A free bus link to St Mary’s is also expected during the airport’s early operating period.

The Sydney Metro–Western Sydney Airport line will eventually connect the terminal with St Marys, but almost certainly won’t be available when passenger flights begin.

That means travellers should look carefully at the total journey rather than simply grabbing the cheapest airfare. WSI could be considerably more convenient for passengers living around Penrith, Liverpool, Campbelltown, Blacktown and Parramatta, but less appealing for those starting near the CBD, eastern suburbs or North Shore.

2PAXfly Takeout

I’m sure this is not the opening scenario that WSI executives envisaged. They would have liked a couple or more of long-haul airlines to launch with, and some Qantas mainline services too. Virgin Australia’s ghosting of the airport is very unfortunate.

I would have thought that, given the Qantas almost no-show, Virgin could have gained some advantage. However, I am not privy to all the data airlines use to plan routes, so maybe I should keep my own counsel.