At Sydney Airport, safety is paramount.

Maintaining Sydney Airport’s runways and taxiways to a high standard is one important way we ensure the airport operates safely. Just like motorways, highways and other roads, runways require essential maintenance to prevent damage from occurring.

Major runway safety project

From 31 July 2021, we will begin to reconstruct the 9,200 square metre concrete slab at the northern end of the main north-south runway. The existing concrete slab was constructed in 1968 and now needs to be replaced to maintain runway safety.

The location of the project site is shown here.

Work will take place 24-hours a day and the project is expected to take around four months to complete (subject to weather).

What impact will the project have?

The project will have a limited impact on flights to and from Sydney Airport.

The main impact will be on the flight path used by aircraft landing on the main north-south runway from the north. This flight path will be unavailable during the project to avoid exposing workers on the worksite to low flying aircraft.

These aircraft will instead use alternative runways and associated flight paths, temporarily increasing the number of flights in some locations.

How will flights in my area be affected?

There will be an unavoidable but temporary impact on the number of aircraft using particular flight paths.

Areas beneath or close to the main north-south runway’s flight paths

People living in areas beneath or close to the flight path used by aircraft landing on the main north-south runway from the north will likely notice fewer flights due to the runway closure.

Areas beneath or close to all other flight paths

People living beneath or close to Sydney Airport’s 17 other flights paths may notice more flights during the four month life of the project.

East-west runway

People living in areas beneath or close to the east-west runway’s flight paths may have recently noticed more aircraft flying overhead. The east-west runway has recently reopened after being closed for aircraft parking for 13 months during 2020 and 2021. With the runway now open, the east-west runway is being used again for noise sharing purposes in accordance with the Australian Government’s noise sharing policy, known as the Long Term Operating Plan for Sydney Airport (LTOP). More information on the LTOP can be found here.

Flightpath charts

Charts estimating how the number of aircraft using each flight path will likely change during the project have been produced. The number of flights shown in the charts represents the average number of flights across the 17-hour operational day – between 6am and 11pm.

View or download the charts showing jet and non-jet flight paths here.

Curfew flights

During the four month life of the project, there will be limited times when other safety or maintenance work needs to be undertaken on other sections of the main runway. This is work that can only be undertaken during the airport curfew.

For no more than 20-nights during the life of the project, the limited number of overnight freight and Air Ambulance flights operating during this period will instead use the parallel north-south runway. Sydney Airport apologises for the temporary impact this change will have.

Frequently Asked Questions

A full list of frequently asked questions can be found here.

Frequently Asked Questions

A full list of frequently asked questions can be found here.

Contact information

Contact: Mr. Ted Plummer

Phone: (02) 9667 6182

Email: [email protected]

If you wish to lodge a formal aircraft noise complaint with Airservices Australia, the Australian Government agency responsible for air traffic management at all of Australia’s major airports, visit their Noise Complaints and Information Service.