Western Sydney International should be an airport that serves our community, not a dumping ground for noise from the east, says Wayne Willmington, president of the Luddenham Progress Association.
The association has gone on the front foot over plans to shift 5000 overnight flights a year from Sydney Airport to Western Sydney International when it opens late in 2026.
Under the Sydney Airport Curfew Act (1995), 24 passenger flights each week are allowed to arrive at Sydney Airport between 5am and 6am, with these flights currently including Qantas, British Airways, and Singapore Airlines services from London.
In addition, 74 freight flights each week are allowed to arrive and depart during Sydney’s curfew between 11pm and 6am.
These flights are strictly required to operate over water, to the south of Sydney Airport, to ensure there are no noise impacts to local communities.
Under the same set of rules, once Western Sydney airport opens the 5000 flights must go there instead – and that’s just not fair, says Mr Willmington.
He says more than 100,000 people living in parts of Western and South Western Sydney and the Blue Mountains will be affected by the night-time flights .
“These flights have operated at Sydney Airport for decades, arriving and departing over water and disturbing no one,’’ Mr Willminton said.
“It doesn’t make sense to shift these flights to Western Sydney where they will be taking off and landing over homes.
“It’s unnecessary and unfair, and once again the residents of Western Sydney are being treated as second-class citizens.’’
The Luddenham Progress Association is calling on both the Albanese Government and the Federal Opposition to maintain the status quo, by pledging to keep these over-water flights at Sydney Airport as part of their election commitments.
Sydney Airport Curfew Act (1995) would need to be amended to maintain the currently approved flights within the curfew period at Sydney Airport.
“We understand some of these flights might be relevant to commerce in Western Sydney and should be the only flights permitted to be redirected from Sydney Airport, after all that was the purpose of Western Sydney Airport, to service the businesses and people of Western Sydney,’’ Mr WIllmington said.
