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Emirates SkyCargo has confirmed it is in talks with Western Sydney International Airport (WSI) for potential freight services.
The Gulf carrier’s freight arm, which last year moved more than 75,000 tonnes of cargo in and out of Australia, is “most definitely” looking at operating out of WSI after the new airport opens next year, Australian cargo manager Greg Johnson said at a media event in Sydney on Thursday.
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“From a cargo point of view, it does offer us some great potential, especially with our freighter movements,” he said.
“No curfew, for instance, gives us an opportunity to look at being a little bit more flexible in scheduling and aircraft utilisation. So, it’s definitely on the radar, and we are in talks with them. They have a separate cargo facility out there and it’s quite state of the art, so it’s got our interest.
“The way it would probably work is that we’re handled by dnata, which is already out there. So, that’s where we would be based, similar to what we’re doing around Australia.”
Sydney is the biggest gateway for Emirates SkyCargo, with 12,897 tonnes exported and 19,406 tonnes imported through Sydney Airport in 2024; the total weekly uplift is around 250 tonnes.
It is served by Airbus A380s, which can carry approximately 17 tonnes of cargo alongside full passenger loads, and is the only airport to see Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777F freighters, which can carry approximately 107 tonnes of cargo per flight.
“In 2024, Emirates SkyCargo exported 37,645 tonnes and imported 37,690 tonnes across its five Australian gateways, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney,” the airline said.
“This equates to an average of 100 tonnes per day exported from Australia by Emirates SkyCargo, and 102 tonnes imported per day to Australia.”
The news comes as Emirates officially launches its Courier Express business into Australia, which carries packages in the bellies of Emirates passenger planes and then partners with local logistics firm Team Global Express to deliver them to Australian customers.
Dennis Lister, senior vice president of product and innovation at Emirates SkyCargo, told media that he believes Emirates Courier Express can “serve faster to Australia than any other express company in the world” using the airline’s passenger fleet.
“I think what’s particularly unique about this situation is we actually create excellent accessibility to capacity on the Emirates fleet, directly to small business and for businesses,” he said.
“This is built directly now for the likes of shippers, SMEs, that actually want to, on the outbound, get their product out of Australia, and from Australia, connecting to Dubai.
“We fly to more than 147 destinations, so what that essentially does is, it starts opening up the network completely to those businesses in Australia.”
WSI has already attracted several airlines ahead of its opening late next year, including QantasLink, Jetstar, Qantas Freight, Singapore Airlines, and Air New Zealand.
The airport has been contacted for comment.
