Australia aviation: Western Sydney Airport gets ‘iconic’ IATA code – can it become 'iconic'?

The Western Sydney International Airport, being constructed on land beyond the furthest suburbs of Australia’s biggest city, has received its IATA code: WSI. It is one of few wholly new airports being built in the First World at this time.

In this report we look at how some of the surface transport concerns are being tackled at an airport for which much greater things are being envisaged than was the case back in 2015.

The main issue here is how the government – the airport’s owner and sponsor for now, at least – needs to be taking onboard user perceptions of what counts for efficacy in the future. COVID-19, which wreaked havoc on the airports business, must serve as a warning not to repeat mistakes of the past.

Passengers expect an airport to function in ‘all weathers’ at the same time as being sustainable. Prettiness, and how many shops there are, no longer figure highly in expectations and calculations.

The storm clouds will return one day. Get it right now and there will be dividends. Get it wrong and there will be consequences.