Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport has completed a two-day emergency exercise involving more than 300 personnel from the NSW Police, Fire & Rescue, Rural Fire Service, NSW Ambulance, Australian Border Force, AFP and Airservices Australia. The drill—held 28-29 October—included the landing of an RFS 737 and a simulated aircraft fire to test the airport’s Aerodrome Emergency Plan and meet Civil Aviation Safety Authority certification requirements.
Border-processing scenarios featured prominently, ensuring that immigration officers, customs staff and medical screeners could coordinate in a mass-casualty event. Officials say the exercise marks a major milestone toward the airport’s scheduled 2026 opening, which will add much-needed international capacity to the Sydney basin.
For global mobility teams, the new airport is expected to relieve slot constraints that have hampered corporate travel to Western Sydney’s burgeoning logistics and tech hubs. The integrated Metro Rail link promises 22-minute journeys to Parramatta, further widening accommodation options for inbound assignees.
Companies planning 2026 relocations should monitor route announcements and consider shifting fly-in-fly-out operations once carriers publish schedules next year.
Border-processing scenarios featured prominently, ensuring that immigration officers, customs staff and medical screeners could coordinate in a mass-casualty event. Officials say the exercise marks a major milestone toward the airport’s scheduled 2026 opening, which will add much-needed international capacity to the Sydney basin.
For global mobility teams, the new airport is expected to relieve slot constraints that have hampered corporate travel to Western Sydney’s burgeoning logistics and tech hubs. The integrated Metro Rail link promises 22-minute journeys to Parramatta, further widening accommodation options for inbound assignees.
Companies planning 2026 relocations should monitor route announcements and consider shifting fly-in-fly-out operations once carriers publish schedules next year.
