Singapore Airlines is set to be the first international carrier to formally commit to operating flights from Sydney’s brand new airport at Badgerys Creek some 44km west of the city from late 2026, according to reporting from The Sydney Morning Herald.
This development would finally allow the carrier to circumvent noise curfews at Sydney’s existing airport, which currently prevent it from operating a lucrative midnight departure timing from Australia’s largest and wealthiest city to its main Singapore hub.
About Western Sydney Airport
Western Sydney Airport (WSI) is a brand new full-service international and domestic passenger airport serving Australia’s largest city, which is being built in four phases, the first of which is due to open in late 2026.
That will see it launch flights from a single A380-capable 3,700m runway, with one passenger terminal, offering capacity for 10 million passengers per year.
However, in later development phases, the facility is expected to expand into a four-terminal, dual-runway operation with the capacity to handle up to 80 million passengers annually by 2060, approaching the current 90 million annual capacity of Singapore Changi Airport.
(Photo: Western Sydney Airport)
Despite being over 40km west of Sydney, the airport will be linked by a toll-free M12 motorway connecting to Sydney via the M7, and will connect to Sydney’s rail network via a dedicated line from the terminal to St Marys station.
Nonetheless, the airport will likely be more convenient for residents of western Sydney suburbs than for those traveling to and from the Central Business District.
Prior to this announcement, only Qantas and Jetstar had confirmed they will be operating domestic flights to and from WSI from late 2026, with a commitment from those carriers to initially base around 15 aircraft at the airport.
Virgin Australia is also a likely tenant at the airport, though it has not confirmed its intentions yet.
SIA can add an ideal timing from Sydney
The existing Sydney Airport, which lies just 8km to the south of the city’s Central Business District, has a strict night operations curfew that prevents aircraft from taking off or landing between the hours of 11pm and 6am each day.
It also has a cap of 80 aircraft takeoffs and landings per hour, which often leads to long delays during peak operating periods.
WSI, on the other hand, will operate 24 hours a day with no noise curfew, allowing Singapore Airlines to launch a service departing close to midnight, which then lands into Changi at around 6am.
That would meet a large connection bank of SIA services to the rest of Asia, and would also finally offer a decent connection from Sydney to SIA’s 9am SQ308 superjumbo service from Singapore to London, completing the popular ‘kangaroo route’ at a new timing.
“Western Sydney International Airport’s late-night departure capacity, for instance, could allow Singapore Airlines’ business travellers to finish a full day’s work in Sydney, take an overnight flight and arrive in Singapore before their first morning meeting the very next day.
Simon Hickey, CEO, Western Sydney International Airport
“Late-night departures could also allow passengers to transit more swiftly from Singapore through their award-winning Changi Airport hub to connect to one of the 125 destinations served by the Singapore Airlines Group.”
The service could have a similar timing to SQ218 from Melbourne to Singapore, which currently departs at 11.35pm and touches down in Changi at 5.30am the following day.
(Photo: Plane’s Portrait Aviation Media / Malcolm Lu)
Singapore Airlines will operate five daily departures from Sydney this upcoming winter season, at 6.45am, 10.00am, 12.15pm, 4.10pm and 7.10pm, but a departure close to midnight is not currently possible from the city, due to curfew restrictions.
We assume that SIA’s Western Sydney flights will complement, rather than replace existing flights over at SYD, since we can’t see the carrier giving up lucrative slots at the latter airport.
“This agreement reflects our commitment to enhancing network connectivity for travellers to and from Sydney, and providing additional services for Australia, which is a major market for the Singapore Airlines Group.
Louis Arul, SVP South West Pacific, Singapore Airlines
“This is a unique opportunity to work with a greenfield airport to set a new base line for customer experience throughout an airport ecosystem.
“We are working closely with WSI to ensure that our customers will continue to enjoy the comprehensive, end-to-end, world-class experience that is synonymous with Singapore Airlines.”
When Singapore Airlines’ WSI flights do commence, Sydney won’t be the only airport where the carrier adopts a dual-airport strategy for its passenger flights.
This also applies in the following cities:
- Beijing (Capital and Daxing)
from November 2024 - London (Gatwick and Heathrow)
- New York (JFK and Newark)
- Tokyo (Haneda and Narita)
It’s not yet known whether SIA’s budget subsidiary Scoot will also seek a presence at WSI.
The low-cost carrier currently flies 10 weekly services on the Singapore – Sydney route, but is similarly unable to operate during the overnight period – often favoured timings for price-sensitive leisure travellers.
KrisFlyer awards and lounges
These are the KrisFlyer award rates for the Singapore – Sydney route, which would also apply to a new service linking Western Sydney Airport.
| KrisFlyer Redemption (one-way) Singapore ⇄ Sydney |
||
| Saver | Advantage | |
| Economy | 30,500 | 55,000 |
| Premium Economy | 51,000 | n/a |
| Business | 68,500 | 90,000 |
| First / Suites | 93,500 | 155,000 |
A Singapore Airlines SilverKris lounge at WSI probably wouldn’t be an early priority for the airline, since a third-party lounge will almost inevitably be part of the development, but a dedicated facility for SIA passengers might appear in future if the airline starts operating multiple daily flights from the airport.
Summary
Singapore Airlines will split its passenger flights between two airports in Sydney from late 2026, as it becomes the first international airline to commit to operating at the new Western Sydney Airport in Badgerys Creek, 44km west of the city.
The airline will likely use this opportunity to launch a midnight departure out of Australia’s largest city, a missing link on the current network due to the strict night noise curfew imposed at the existing Sydney airport.
(Cover Photo: Western Sydney Airport)
The one way business saver redemption is 68500
People in Western Sydney are already complaining about the anticipated noise.
There have been plans to build the airport there for nearly 40 years! They certainly had enough warning
What about lounges? Will SQ build their own First and Business Class lounge at WSI for Star Alliance airlines?
Maybe FedEx and UPS will move their Sydney operations from SYD to WSI to allow late-night flight operations since the latter will be open 24 hours a day. WSI will allow overseas flights to divert there if for any reason the flights are delayed long enough to reach Sydney after the 11PM-6AM curfew starts at SYD. I hope United Airlines will eventually serve WSI to augment their SYD flights and if they do, I see United flying SFO-WSI service with a Boeing 787-9 and maybe even serve LAX-WSI.