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Western Sydney Airport is seeing bumper demand for its launch, with initial flights selling out in under an hour.
Speaking to media at the airport on Monday, WSI chief executive Simon Hickey said there will be “a great mix of carriers moving forward” at launch, with robust ticket sales and “very positive feedback” across all its airline partners.
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“There is a mix of opportunity here and a mix of carriers. So, we’ve got Qantas and we’ve got Jetstar, and we’ll be starting our operations with Jetstar on October 25,” he said.
“Those first flights were sold out, I think, within the first hour. That is how popular they are, and I know that they’re selling well.
“Not only that, through the holiday period, I understand that they’re selling really well for Jetstar, which is what you would want to see. Qantas is doing well, and that is such a long way out yet.
“We hear from Singapore Airlines that they’re doing well. Same with Air New Zealand. So, they’re doing well for those first partner carriers, which is fantastic. It’s not just their first flights that are selling out – it’s across the period, which is a really positive sign.”
Australian Aviation understands that Jetstar has been seeing strong demand across the board on services to Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast, while Qantas – currently around eight months from launch – is seeing demand in line with expectations.
“There’ll be so much demand through this airport. We’ll continue to grow in line with that demand, which is for business traffic, it’s for leisure traffic, and it’s for visiting relatives and family and friends,” said Hickey.
“It’s for all of the connectivity that comes through an airport like ours in a place like ours.”
WSI has also been floated as a base for new carriers like ultra-low-cost start-up Zinc Airlines, and Hickey said the airport, which is slated to operate 24/7, will be able to “provide additional on-the-ground capacity for airlines to take advantage of”.
“That includes our current great brands that we have in Australia, Qantas, Jetstar, and others, to continue to grow because that capacity is not constrained. It can lift in line with demand. And where those airlines see there’s good profitable flying, then they will do that,” he said.
“But of course, when you increase that capacity on the ground, it does allow other carriers to look at what they want to do in terms of their network and their footprint, and so we’ll wait and see what happens in relation to that.”
Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines have been contacted for comment.
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