U
Up to the early sixties the majority
of Sydney-siders referred to the
airport as Mascot. The first paved
runway was 07/25 and the next
one constructed was 16/34 (now
16R/34L), jutting into Botany Bay,
starting in 1959, to accommodate large jets.
07/25 is used mainly by lighter aircraft,
although large four engine jet aircraft still
periodically land on the runway from the east,
when south-westerly winds are blowing in
Sydney. 16R is presently the longest operational
runway in Australia, with 4,400 m
(14,300 ft) paved length and 3,920 m (12,850 ft)
between the zebra thresholds.
KLM DC8 at Gate 2 International Terminal in 1972
Modern history
By the 1960s, the need for a new international terminal had become apparent, and work
commenced in late 1966. Much of the new terminal was designed by Paynter and Dixon
Industries. The plans for the design are held by the State Library of New South Wales.
The new terminal was officially opened on 3 May 1970, by HM Queen Elizabeth II. The
first Boeing 747 "Jumbo Jet" at the airport, Pan American's Clipper Flying Cloud
(N734PA), arrived on 4 October 1970. The east-west runway was then 2,500 m (8,300 ft)
long; in the 1970s the north-south runway was expanded to become one of the longest
runways in the southern hemisphere. The international terminal was expanded in 1992
and has undergone several refurbishments since then, including one that was
completed in early 2000 in order to re-invent the airport in time for the 2000 Olympic
Games held in Sydney. The airport additionally underwent another project development
that began in 2010 to extend the transit zone which brought new duty free facilities,
shops & leisure areas for passengers.
The limitations of having only two runways that crossed each other had become
apparent and governments grappled with Sydney's airport capacity for decades;
eventually the controversial decision to build a third runway was made. The third runway
was parallel to the existing runway 16/34, entirely on reclaimed land from Botany Bay. A
proposed new airport on the outskirts of Sydney was shelved in 2004, before being re-
examined in 2009–2012 showing that Kingsford Smith airport will not be able to cope by
2030.
YSSY Sydney
June 2017
www.alliance-airways.net
4 ! 3