Proposed changes to airspace management in the Sydney Basin could significantly reduce flight training capacity and create long term pressure on Australia’s pilot pipeline, according to the Royal Federation of Aero Clubs of Australia (RFACA).
The organisation has raised concerns about a proposed traffic levelling mandate affecting Bankstown Airport and surrounding Class D airspace, arguing the proposal is driven by air traffic control staffing limitations rather than airspace safety requirements.
“Our core concern is straightforward: the proposed traffic-levelling mandate for Bankstown Airport (and associated Class D airspace across the Sydney Basin) is driven by a shortage of TCU consoles and ATC staffing, not by any airspace safety requirement,” RFACA president Lachlan Hyde told Australian Flying.
Hyde said modelling based on Airservices Australia data shows the proposed changes could significantly affect peak period operations.
“Modelling of Airservices’ own data confirms that 37% of current departures at Bankstown Airport operate at spacings tighter than the proposed 3-minute mandate. Enforcing this is the functional equivalent of grounding two out of every five flights during peak periods.”
The Sydney Basin is one of the country’s busiest flight training environments, with airports such as Bankstown and Camden supporting large numbers of student pilots and flying schools.
Hyde said limiting movement rates during peak training periods could have significant operational consequences for both students and training organisations.
“In practical terms, it means fewer aircraft are able to depart during key training windows, longer taxi and sequencing delays, and potentially airborne holding outside controlled airspace on return to Bankstown or to transit the Class D airspace.”
He said the broader impact would extend well beyond individual operators.
“The numbers are stark, highlighting a 37% capacity cut is the functional equivalent of closing Bankstown Airport for 135 days a year, a shortfall of over 83,000 movements annually.”
RFACA has proposed an alternative operating model designed around three geographic corridors radiating from Bankstown, north toward Hornsby and the Hawkesbury River, west toward Penrith and the Nepean River, and south toward Campbelltown and Camden.
Hyde said the approach mirrors existing sector management at Sydney Airport.
“The solution we’re proposing already exists next door at Sydney Airport who manages their approach sectors by splitting them into separately staffed positions during peak periods and recombining them during quieter times.
“We’re asking for exactly the same model, three controller positions that can de-combine during peak windows and consolidate off-peak for efficiency.”
Hyde warned that if the current proposal proceeds unchanged it could lead to a long-term contraction of general aviation activity in the Sydney Basin.
“It will lead to a permanent contraction of GA in Sydney. Airspace settings established during the WSI transition will remain for decades.”
“Australia cannot build a new international airport in Western Sydney while simultaneously constraining the national pilot training system that sustains it.”
He said RFACA has formally submitted its position paper to Airservices Australia and intends to continue working through the consultation process.
RFACA said it supports the successful integration of Western Sydney International Airport but believes this must not come at the expense of Australia’s primary flight training environment.
“The Aviation White Paper committed to growing general aviation just 18 months ago. We're asking the Government to honour its own policy framework before the ink is dry.”