Take a look inside Australia’s ‘most Instagrammable’ new airport terminal
It’s been a long time coming but at last the newly completed domestic and international terminal is ready and we have the pictures. Take a look inside and watch the video.
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Western Sydney Airport has unveiled what it is calling Australia’s “most Instagrammable terminal” with the completed building bringing the gateway within 18 months of becoming fully operational.
Spread over the equivalent of 13.5 football fields, the domestic and international terminal marks a major milestone for the $5.3bn airport due to start welcoming passengers late next year.
Key features include the most advanced baggage handling system in the nation, with 5km of contractor belts capable of processing 2000 bags an hour.
The suspended aluminium feature ceiling is the largest of its kind in Australia, spanning more than 208,000m, and the roof and covered walkways are topped with 8848 solar panels.
Eight concrete feature columns support the “great Australian veranda” at the entrance to the terminal, and three “swing gates” allow gate doors to switch between domestic and international security provisions in 30 minutes.
Western Sydney chief executive Simon Hickey said it was a terrific milestone for the team and promised a “fitting welcome” for people arriving into Australia at Badgerys Creek.
“It’ll be something that people remember. There’s plenty of Instagram moments throughout and it’s reflective of our First Nations community in western Sydney,” Mr Hickey said.
“Certain aspects of the terminal feel more like you’re in an art gallery in terms of the design, it’s so tremendous – there’s lots of natural light and sandstone feature walls throughout that I’m sure people will love to snap and put on their socials when they’re heading off on their journey.”
Anthony Albanese and Transport Minister Catherine King will attend Wednesday’s official opening of the terminal, which more than 2000 people helped to build.
The Prime Minister said “vision, persistence and co-operation had led to this milestone”.
“This airport will drive economic growth and turbocharge productivity,” he said.
Ms King said the project remained on time and on budget, and would shape greater Sydney for decades to come.
Almost seven years after work began on the site, the airport was taking shape, but Mr Hickey said there was still much to do.
Construction was continuing on the cargo precinct, and Airservices was building a fire station as well as perfecting technology for a digital control tower that would take the place of a traditional high-rise structure.
Mr Hickey said the latest technology was being incorporated throughout the airport, including in the design of “fast taxiways”.
“We will have a five-minute taxi time from the runway to terminal so you spend less time in the aircraft waiting to take off or getting to the terminal,” he said.
“There’s a whole lot of things that have gone into this terminal which just make it easy and seamless for customers making their way through.”
To date four airlines have made a firm commitment to operating out of Western Sydney: Singapore Airlines, Air New Zealand, Qantas and Jetstar.
Mr Hickey said he was hopeful Virgin Australia would also sign up, along with more international carriers keen to take advantage of the curfew-free airport.
“We’re talking to a lot of airlines, we were just over at the Routes conference in Perth where we met with over 30 airlines, so there’s plenty of interest,” he said.
“We’ve built for 10 million annual passengers, about the size of Adelaide Airport, and the announcements to date take us to nearly half of that already committed at the airport, so in terms of an airport built for growth that’s a really good start.”
Originally published as Take a look inside Australia’s ‘most Instagrammable’ new airport terminal
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