Sydney Airport CEO Geoff Culbert will leave at the end of the year.Credit:Brook Mitchell
Culbert said he felt it was time to step down at the end of 2023,now that the airport was close to fully recovered from the COVID-19-induced grounding two years ago. The airport’s traffic figures currently hover just below 85 per cent of its pre-pandemic averages,with 3 million passengers last month.
“It’s been a privilege to have led Australia’s premier domestic and international airport since 2018,and to work with such a wonderful team through a unique and challenging period in the airport’s history,” Culbert said.
Culbert navigated the airport through its 2022 delisting following a $23.6 billion takeover bid from a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners and IFM Investors.
Culbert told staff in an email seen by this masthead that it was a “tough call” to resign and he had no new role lined up.
“It’s time for me to take a breath,” he said in the email.
“The passenger recovery is really taking hold and our operational resilience is back to where it should be. The airport is really starting to buzz and by the end of this year we should be very close to being fully recovered.”
Sydney Airport chair David Gonski credited Culbert with leading the airport through the most disruptive period in aviation history.