Take-off fund to bring more tourists to our neck of the woods

A new government fund will put Western Sydney International (WSI) airport on course for a successful opening by accelerating aviation capacity from day one, boosting the NSW visitor economy and creating more choice for NSW travellers.

The $8 million Western Sydney International take-off fund will offer incentives for international airlines to fly new routes into WSI ahead of its grand opening in late 2026. The funding will be matched by WSI, representing a combined fund value of $16 million to boost airline capacity.

The new airport will play an important role in achieving the NSW Government’s goal of $91 billion of visitor expenditure by 2035, with the total $16 million funding package forecast to deliver over 162,000 international visitors to NSW and generate an estimated $530 million of visitor expenditure.

WSI take-off fund comes at a critical stage for the state’s newest international gateway with airline tickets for flights scheduled to go on sale from later this year.

This fund will incentivise more carriers to join Qantas and Jetstar (domestic) and Singapore Airlines (international) as the airport works to accelerate passenger numbers to 10 million per year.  

The take-off fund will be administered by the NSW Government’s lead agency for the visitor economy, Destination NSW.

Allocation of funding provided to airlines will be agreed between WSI and Destination NSW on a case-by-case basis and will include incentives such as passenger subsidies and marketing support.

The funding provided to each airline is subject to the number of services and subsequent number of passengers they carry over the first three years of operation. 

This aviation investment comes on top of $10 billion of joint NSW-Federal funding for roads and transport infrastructure to connect WSI to Sydney’s transport network.

“You only get to open a new airport once, that’s why we’re backing Western Sydney airport to land new routes and ensure this once in a generation opportunity is a runway success,’’ says minister for jobs and tourism John Graham.

“Western Sydney airport will be a massive growth engine for the NSW visitor economy.

“This fund will pour jet fuel into that engine.

“The more passengers we can bring in, the more spending across Western Sydney’s incredible food precincts,’’ he said.