As Sydney’s second airport – Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport (WSI) – approaches completion, we’re learning more and more about what to expect at the $5.3 billion "Aerotropolis". A huge new city centre connected to the airport is set to be the first major city built in Australia in more than 100 years, and the new flight paths from both airports will cross the sky above various Sydney suburbs – sparking a little public backlash from the councils most likely to be affected. Now, plans for the air traffic control system at Sydney’s new airport have been revealed – and it’s all looking very futuristic. They won't have air traffic control towers... Instead, for the first time anywhere in Australia, they'll use digital technology for remote air traffic control.
How the heck does that work? Rather than sitting in a tower directly overlooking the runway, the air traffic controllers at WSI will be positioned at a data centre that will reportedly be located almost 20 kilometres from the airport. The Eastern Creek data centre will be operated by new Airservices Australia staff members – whose jobs will be much the same as the air traffic controllers who currently oversee the flights coming in and out of the existing Sydney Airport.
Though the idea of air traffic controllers not having a direct eye-line view of the runway seems inherently more dangerous, Australia’s aviation experts have described this decision as a positive leap for Australia’s air traffic safety – with similar digital airfields already in operation elsewhere in the world (including in the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Argentina, Brazil, Hungary and Norway).
WSI’s air traffic control centre is set to feature a 45-metre mast fitted with 20 cameras – offering 360-degree visibility in every direction, as well as direct visibility into the sky above. The visuals depicted by the cameras will be projected into a Digital Aerodrome within the centre, with special Digital Aerodrome Service (DAS) technology allowing for each aircraft to be named on the screen (and therefore more easy to identify and direct). The DSA will also utilise object tracking, infrared cameras, night vision and image enhancement to allow air traffic controllers to see beyond the limitations of the human eye.
If you’re worried about lightning strikes, power blackouts or cyber attacks, you’re not alone. But the operational team at WSI cite three lines of defence that will keep the system operating in any of these eventualities; a digital tower at Canberra Airport, individually cabled cameras, and approach units that service the remote tower, allowing the team to “revert to contingency measures".
Western Sydney International Airport’s Chief Executive Officer Simon Hickey has described it as “world-class technology” that will “deliver even greater levels of safety and increased capacity”.
“The digital tower at WSI will bring together the skills of Australia’s air traffic controllers, with cutting-edge digital technology to enhance safety and improve efficiency,” Mr Hickey said.
Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport and its remote air traffic control centre (the Eastern Creek data centre) are set to be complete by mid-2026. You can keep up to date with developments over here.