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Sydney Airport has seen its biggest-ever quarter for international travel, though domestic and regional numbers were both slightly down.
A record high of 4.32 million international passengers passed through its terminals in the first quarter of 2025, up 3.9 per cent on the same quarter in 2024, as well as 6.08 million domestic and regional passengers for a total of 10.4 million.
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These domestic figures represent a drop of 1.3 per cent year-on-year; however, international travel by Australian passport holders was up 7.5 per cent, with South Korean, Indian and Philippine passport holders also increasing on last year.
Sydney Airport CEO Scott Charlton said the result is a strong start to the year and underscores the “continued strength of global travel demand”.
“This momentum is further bolstered by key developments, including the announcement of Hong Kong Airlines which will begin flying in June and Turkish Airlines expanding to daily services starting December,” he said.
“That momentum is being matched on the ground by some of the most significant upgrades the airport has seen, from enhanced security screening at T1 International, to a major transformation of the T2 Domestic experience, and an exciting refresh of the food and beverage offering at T3 Domestic. These projects will deliver tangible improvements for our passengers.
“As we look forward, our focus remains on building on this momentum and maintaining effective operational performance. The positive start to the year, combined with our ongoing investments in infrastructure and passenger experience, sets us up for sustained growth.”
The $200 million Terminal 2 renovations, announced in November and commencing this month, are the first to T2 in more than 30 years and include overhauls to check-in, bag drop, and security areas, with the aim of getting passengers from kerb to gate within 15 minutes.
Around 17 million passengers use Terminal 2 every year, which was built in the 1990s to handle around eight million annual passengers. It currently hosts Virgin Australia, Jetstar, and regional airline services, and would be Australia’s fourth largest airport if it stood alone.
The T1 international terminal is also receiving upgrades, with 15 new screening lanes using CT technology expected to increase throughput from 4,500 to 5,850 passengers per hour. Seven international departure gates will also be refreshed, with the airport having said they will provide more comfort to waiting passengers.
