Sydney Basin Airspace - changes due to Western Sydney Airport
AusALPA has participated in a series of industry consultation meetings hosted by Airservices. We have been keen to ensure procedural designs are safe, are aligned with international standards, and are operationally suitable in terms of flyability and workload considerations.
The discussions have included topics of changes to the procedures to the other Sydney basin control zones and their associated procedures, and a detailed focus on Western Sydney International (WSI) such as the draft SIDs, STARs, NAPs and ground movement matters.
Some of the new SIDs have been designed with challenging climb gradients and with potential workload issues embedded. For example, we have questioned one particular departure which had dual height requirements for the same waypoint, which straddles the transition altitude. In scenarios of QNH being quite different to standard ISA, there is potential for an impossibility of compliance with these dual requirements. Additionally, the workload involved at such a waypoint runs contrary to practical NTS and HF considerations. Other stakeholders agreed and AsA took the feedback on board for further consideration.
AFAP Safety and Technical Pre‑Convention Day, Adelaide (16 Oct 2025)
Digital Air Services Session
The “Digital Aerodrome Services (DAS)” session brought together representatives from pilot associations, air‑traffic‑control organisations, and technical experts to discuss the introduction of remote and digital tower technology in Australia. AusALPAs position is cautiously supportive of technological change but demands solid evidence that digital or remote tower systems can achieve safety levels equal to, or greater than, those of conventional towers. Captain Tomas Gustafsson from the Swedish ALPA and an IFALPA/EASA Technical rep’, has extensive experience in Europe providing valuable insight into the operational, safety, and regulatory challenges of digitalisation.
Captain Gustafsson described how Sweden and other European states implemented remote towers, initially driven by cost‑saving objectives. He cautioned that while the technology has matured, promised economic benefits have not always materialised, and several safety and operational issues—such as alternate‑aerodrome planning, loss of local situational awareness, and cyber‑security vulnerabilities—remain unresolved. Sweden’s regulatory authority has since restricted flight planning so that an aircraft’s destination and alternate cannot both be controlled from the same remote‑tower centre. He stressed that true safety assurance requires involvement in system design and validation, as pilots are a key “external stakeholder,” even though controllers are considered the formal “end users.”
Local discussion of Australian Implementation
The second half of the session turned to the Australian implementation, with Scott Nugent (Civil Air President) and David Wells, former Head of Transformation at Airservices Australia, outlining progress toward digital control of both Canberra and Western Sydney (Nancy Bird Walton) airports. Wells explained that Australia’s model uses high‑definition 360° camera masts connected via secure fibre networks to new remote‑tower centres housed in data‑centre facilities at Hume (Canberra) and Eastern Creek (Western Sydney). Both sites will operate as single‑aerodrome digital towers, not multi‑airport centres as attempted in Europe. The justification is primarily life‑cycle cost—being able to replace and upgrade technology without constructing new concrete towers—while maintaining full safety and redundancy through dual power, generators, and resilient communications links.
In open discussion, there were questions about human‑factors risks, local weather awareness, latency and redundancy, and how these systems will integrate with traditional radar and communication networks. Panellists agreed that while the technology can work safely, success depends on robust regulation, clear contingency arrangements, and close collaboration between controllers and flight crews during transition.
For Western Sydney Airport, the meeting heard that its digital‑tower service is planned to be operational from day one of the airport’s opening—with controllers located at the secure Eastern Creek remote‑tower centre. Initially the installation will use proven European technology and operate in a single‑aerodrome mode. Experienced controllers, largely from Sydney Tower, are being trained for the new environment, though full system integration with the broader ATC network may follow gradually after opening. Western Sydney will represent Australia’s first large‑scale digital‑tower operation, a major step in modernising national air‑traffic services—but one that must continue to be guided by a strong safety and pilot‑engagement framework. Consensus was sceptical that the technology and staff will be ready for opening of Western Sydney and expect “stop gap” measures to be put in place.