Countdown to take off: What trial passengers really think of Australia’s newest airport

Australia’s newest airport may not be officially taking off with customers until October 25, but that doesn’t mean “passengers” aren’t already putting the new terminal through its paces.

Armed with fake boarding passes and pretend luggage, Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport has been inviting locals and aviation enthusiasts to take part in a trial passenger program to help stress-test the new airport.

The trial program has been running every Tuesday and Thursday and will continue until mid-October, ahead of the airport’s official opening on October 25, 2026.

Members of the public are trying everything from checking in for their flight, moving through security screening, and using airport facilities.

Two such pretend passengers said they enjoyed a “seamless” experience at the new airport recently.

The Mulgoa locals were handed a pair of boarding passes and went about the terminal as if they were about to board a flight.

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“The general check in process, including security, was seamless,” one told nine.com.au.

“It doesn’t matter whether you are flying domestically or internationally, you drop your bags off at the same bag drop stations and go through the same security area.”

Indeed, that is one thing this airport does differently to many others – not separating international or domestic travellers until after they go through security.

At the end of each day volunteers are able to provide feedback.

“The terminal is amazing, and the surrounding areas well planned,” they said.

“A couple of obvious deficiencies were the lack of seating within the terminal and the absence of any travelators.

“It was good to be able to provide feedback at the end of the trial and help them practice going live.”

Another volunteer, Michael James, also raised concerns about a lack of both seating and signs.

“It was just a little lack of signage to direct you off the plane, and it is a long walk. We found the signage wasn’t clear for your direction. There are no travelators on the international arrival side, which was a bit of a downside,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“My other concern was lack of seating on the arrivals area and lack of seating around the baggage carousel. It is also a small airport, maybe more like a regional airport.”

Meanwhile, trail passenger Kylie praised the design of the new airport, but did raise some heat concerns.

“I loved the layout, it’s just a really beautifully built airport, from the timber panelling in the ceilings to the view of the mountains. Everything just flowed, it was a very calming airport,” she told the paper.

“There’s a lot of window and glass that faces west, and even on the winter day we went, it felt warm.”

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WSI Chief Operating Officer Matt Duffy said this final phase of WSI’s operational preparations had been underway since August and involved hundreds of trial participants taking part each week. 

“The interest from volunteers within the community for the trials was overwhelming – thousands of trial slots were filled within days,” he said.

Officers from the Australian Border Force (ABF) and Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishers (DAFF) also take part in the trials.

“We’re aiming to make these various elements to be as ‘fail-safe’ as they can be,” Duffy said. 

“This is also about giving us as much experience as possible in navigating the inherently dynamic nature of round-the-clock airport operations.”

A Jetstar A320 became the first trial passenger flight to touch down at WSI on September 1, landing at 9:30am from Melbourne.

The airline will become the first airline to fly passengers from Western Sydney when flight JQ362 takes off for the Gold Coast at 11am on Sunday 25 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.

“[The] 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.”