The Australian Government has updated its air services agreements with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, opening access to seven new passenger services per week through the new Western Sydney International Airport (WSI).

These new agreements will allow airlines from both Gulf states and Australia to launch new services in and out of the curfew-free WSI, providing a significant opportunity for tourism in Western Sydney and NSW.

This comes as the airport continues preparation for opening, with final CASA instrument approach safety checks being carried out this week and the airport’s announcement that Wilson Parking is to manage the new 24-hour gateway’s carpark.

In 2025, Western Sydney welcomed 28.6 million international and domestic visitors who stayed 34.2 million nights and spent $8.8 billion in the region – WSI will provide a significant opportunity to drive further growth.

The airport will open later this year, with the first passenger services expected to land in October. Destination NSW has an ongoing partnership with WSI to support the development and attraction of new flights for the airport through the Western Sydney International Take-Off Fund (WSITOF) and the NSW Take Off Fund (NSWTOF).

Previously announced routes include Air New Zealand’s Auckland-Western Sydney service and a Singapore Airlines route, both of which are supported through the WSITOF. Qantas and Jetstar have also confirmed that they will fly domestic services into the new airport.

The WSITOF alone is forecast to deliver more than 162,000 international visitors to NSW and generate an estimated $530 million in visitor expenditure.

In addition to aviation investments, Destination NSW has also established a dedicated Western Sydney–focused team to lead destination development through industry support, partnerships, and collaboration with local stakeholders. The team will play a key role in capitalising on significant growth opportunities, with a strong emphasis on opportunities linked to the opening of Western Sydney International Airport.

There's also real opportunity to grow the number events and conferences that take place in the region. In 2025, events secured by Business Events Sydney and Business Events NSW injected over $192 million into the NSW economy.

Western Sydney has been specifically identified as a priority location for business events infrastructure. Existing venues like Western Sydney Convention Centre and West HQ can host large business events and attract both domestic and international events from different sectors.

The Australian Government is also expanding tourism and trade opportunities by negotiating air services agreements with the Maldives and El Salvador

A new agreement has been signed allowing airlines from Australia and the Maldives to operate international passenger and cargo services to all international airports in Australia.

The new arrangement between Australia and El Salvador allows airlines to offer code share services to expand their global networks and partnerships.