Western Sydney International Airport (WSI) welcomed a Jetstar trial flight on Tuesday morning for the first time alongside hundreds of trial passengers as it ramps up the final phases of its Operational Readiness Program.
The passenger trials involve members of the public participating as volunteers, helping WSI and its partners trial all stages of the terminal customer’s journey.
The program simulates a genuine journey with trial passengers allocated domestic and international flights before checking in for their flight, moving through WSI’s security screening, and engaging with different airport facilities and staff as they would on any travel day.
They use self-check in and bag drop facilities, and WSI’s modern security screening, which includes extra-long lanes, additional body scanners, and central image processing to review multiple trays at a time and facilitate efficient processing.
Officers from the Australian Border Force and Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishers also take part in the trials, facilitating their role in the international arrivals process and border security.
WSI Chief Operating Officer Matt Dufty said this final phase of WSI’s operational preparations have been underway since August and involved hundreds of trial participants taking part each week.
“By October, we anticipate that thousands of participants will have engaged in our trial program – each one of them playing an important role in stress-testing our systems, processes and people. We’re aiming to make these various elements to be as ‘fail safe’ as they can be,” he said.
“This is also about giving us as much experience as possible in navigating the inherently dynamic nature of round-the-clock airport operations. It’s a unique and positive opportunity we’re able to leverage as Australia’s first major international greenfield airport in more than 50 years.
“The interest from volunteers within the community for the trials was overwhelming – thousands of trial slots were filled within days. We’re very grateful for the enthusiasm and support from the participants who are taking part each week in the lead up to our passenger services taking off in October.”
Jetstar Chief Pilot Tyrone Simes said flying the first service into a brand-new airport is a once-in-a-career moment.
“Australia hasn’t opened a major new airport like this in more than 50 years, so this morning was a genuinely exciting milestone for me and the team,” he said.
“We’re doing this eight weeks out from the first flight deliberately. It gives us time to take what we learned today and build it into our procedures and crew briefings, ensuring everything is fully tested and refined well ahead of launch.
“Today’s flight was about getting to know the airport before we carry customers. Crew flew the arrival and departure exactly as they will in October, then worked through the ground side of the operation: the taxi route to the gate, lining up on the aerobridge, and the turnaround that gets the aircraft back out again.
“By the time we carry our first customers from western Sydney, every element of this operation will be familiar to us – and we can’t wait to share that first flight with them.”
Commercial passenger services begin taking off at WSI from October 25.
Emily Chate
Emily Chate is a western Sydney-based journalist covering local news. A graduate of the University of Wollongong, Emily has contributed to The Daily Telegraph and worked as a freelance journalist. She has worked at The Western Weekender newspaper since 2024.
