Brisbane goes for gold with $70b win from 2032 Olympics
But a business expert has played down the Olympic-sized impact touted on Tuesday, warning the cost of preparing for a Games might outweigh the benefits.
The seven-year countdown to the 2032 Games has begun, with a Deloitte Economics Report predicting the country would benefit from tens of billions of dollars post-Games.
The report forecast the Games would help inject $39.5 billion and create 7800 additional full-time jobs for Queensland's southeast through to the year 2052.
The remainder of Queensland was set to receive $19.3 billion and 4900 extra jobs, with $11.8 billion and 4700 additional jobs for the rest of the country over the 20-year period.
'In some sense, the exact dollars don't matter,' Deloitte Access Economics' Pradeep Philip told a packed Brisbane event boasting Olympic heavyweights on Tuesday.
'It's the magnitude and the trajectory of our economic growth that is important.'
A forecast volunteering uptick is set to attract 50,000 mostly Australian people, and is expected to contribute to higher labour productivity, feeding the economic boom.
Transport, event and public infrastructure set to be built for the Games would also contribute to the long-term economic legacy, Philip said.
Brisbane's enhanced reputation was also expected to be a factor, contributing to higher pre-and post-Games tourism as well as boosting merchandise exports and foreign direct investment.
Australian Olympic Committee CEO Mark Arbib said the report was 'music to our ears'.
'We can't wait for Brisbane 2032, the world is going to come to Queensland,' he said.
But business expert Sheranne Fairley claimed projects rarely came in on budget and warned the Brisbane Olympics may not have a positive economic legacy.
She urged people to keep a healthy amount of scepticism about the touted impacts, with a string of previous Olympic host cities enduring cost blowouts.
'Pretty much every Games we've ever had, we've touted economic benefits and said there's going to be all these positive benefits,' the University of Queensland academic said.
'But we see a lot of the time, there's cost blowouts.
'Then there's really no sustained tracking of what those benefits are.'
She said multiple studies would likely be completed after the 2032 event boasting different Games impacts but believed it would be difficult to determine its overall legacy.
She cited the 2018 Commonwealth Games hosted by the Gold Coast, saying some businesses were left 'high and dry' when they ordered extra stock for the expected influx of visitors that never came.
'There were certainly some businesses that were left out of pocket,' she said.
Glasgow will host a pared-back Commonwealth Games in 2026 after Victoria reneged as host, citing contentious cost blowouts.
Yet Brisbane Olympic boss Andrew Liveris said the 2032 Games legacy would be different, after being hosted under new reforms.
Brisbane organisers will abide by the Olympic 'new norm' that encourages host cities to use existing or temporary venues to help ensure a more affordable, beneficial and sustainable Games.
'We will deliver a Games for the entire region and the entire country that happens to have the word Brisbane as its headline,' he told function on Tuesday.
The 2032 Olympics will ensure Queensland had a reputation for 'warmth, hospitality, openness' lasting beyond the event, he said.
The clock is ticking for the Games after the Queensland government finally confirmed its venue blueprint in March, more than 1300 days after Brisbane was named host city.
Victoria Park in Brisbane's inner city is expected to become the Games hub, with a 63,000-seat main stadium as part of a $7.1 billion venue funded by the state and federal governments.
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Sydney Morning Herald
28 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Swans on the surface': What it takes to be an air traffic controller
Melbourne Aerodrome and Airspace Services head Leanne Costin says: 'If you are tapping your foot on the floor, or if you're fidgeting and nervous as you do the work, this is not the job for you. 'You can't be stressed doing this.' Calm and controlled. And alert: there are far more coffee mugs in the tower than controllers on duty. An espresso machine can be seen. The casual dress code is almost like out of a tech start-up: lanyards, business shirts, jeans, hoodies, shorts and thongs, even. What counts is the quality of work. The tower is fully staffed at about 6am and until about 9pm and then it and when it goes into overnight schedule. There are two bedrooms in the Melbourne control tower – one on the seventh floor and another down on the ground floor – for a quick nap. Air traffic controllers who have had a busy night, for example, can recharge before they get on the road to drive home. Having a dedicated place for a quick nap is part of a fatigue management plan. There are 902 civilian air traffic controllers in the country, and they all work for Airservices Australia; it holds a monopoly on firefighting services at airports, too, also employing just over 1000 firefighters at airport's nationwide. ASA is a government-owned entity that raises money from fees charged to the airlines for its services. It's a big job. ASA is responsible for 11 per cent of the world's airspace that runs up across Australia and out west across the Indian Ocean to Mauritius and Colombo. The organisation conducted 3.9 million aircraft movements – take-offs, landings, midair direction – in 2024. This isn't only air traffic approaching and departing airports, but aircraft en route, at 38,000 feet, crossing the continent or travelling to and from Asia, North and South America, and Africa. The office place calm of Melbourne and Brisbane, where the other air traffic control centre is located, is shielded from outside disruptions. ASA faces a number of obstacles that can buffet the organisation: not only does its ageing equipment need upgraded, commercial aviation's post-COVID bounce back has increased the workload. Uncrewed aircraft and drones are also beginning to fill Australia's skies. Adding to the complexity stew, the military has 12 bases around the country that have functioned as their own 'islands' of air traffic control within Australia. Airservices Australia CEO Rob Sharp notes that improvements at airports will increase capacity for terminals and airlines in Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne, where a third runway is being built. Sydney is getting a fresh new airport with Western Sydney International coming online next year. But infrastructure support services needed to accommodate growth are in some cases '30 or 40 years' old, Sharp said. For this reason, the government was looking ahead when in 2009 it ordered Airservices Australia and the Department of Defence to work to harmonise the control of civilian and military aerospace. The goal is to build operational resilience, safety and increase efficiency by reducing the amount of system-to-system co-ordination and double-ups. ASA's decision to back the OneSKY project, a plan to fuse civil and military air control, is 'globally quite unique', Sharp said on one afternoon at the Melbourne facility. AirServices Australia anticipates that it will save $2.7 billion over 20 years – once the long-delayed program is fully operational. 'When you look at the geopolitics, I think this system will really stand Australia in good stead,' said Sharp. Loading China's decision to conduct naval drills in the Tasman Sea in February is a vivid example. Australia first learnt of it through a Virgin pilot who flagged it with air traffic controllers. Sharp says OneSKY will create more backbone for air control during climate-related events, too. Should a cyclone force the closure of one facility, another air traffic control centre can temporarily provide cover over the network. It 'gives us a lot more resilience to the weather that is occurring'. Most controllers aren't up in the tower but downstairs at Air Traffic Service Centre, a much larger room on the ground of the ASA's compound, on the far side of Melbourne's Airport, away from the terminals and parking. There are banks of radio scopes where the controllers sit, directing the air traffic over Australia, which itself is spliced up into smaller sectors. The vibe is alert but calm. The overhead lights are slightly dimmed. The intensity of fluorescent bulbs is reduced so that it doesn't wear out the eyes of air traffic controllers, who work for about two hours and then take a one-hour break, and then another two hours so they remain fresh for the entire process. To look closely at the screens, laid out in four banks, there's so much information overlapping that it looks, when zoomed out, like smudges of coal. It's only when you zoom in, and continue to zoom in, you can see the smudging is a cluster of symbols for aircraft in motion on the screen. The amount of information and communication is intense. From the time a flight pushes off from Sydney to the time it arrives at the gate in Melbourne, it would be passed through the hands of 14 controllers and five supervisors. As a systems supervisor, Sean Howard monitors the consoles used by the air traffic controllers. He will both react to and prepare for changes, including if there is a technology issue that affects coverage, for example, a radar malfunction. Howard said his work is 'like a triage doctor in an emergency room – we have to adapt to any issue'. The banks of radio scopes correspond to the geography in the country and beyond. On one row, there is coverage for Adelaide, Tasmania, then Melbourne, Sydney, then the Northwest, west and south of Melbourne, the Grampians area. And then there's Perth, whose aerospace has its own unique challenges because it accommodates fly in, fly out traffic which follows surges on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Howard said: 'Controllers try not to focus too much on thinking about the number of people they are looking after [on board the planes].' 'Rather we are part of the overall industry team, the pilots and airline staff are looking after the people on the plane and we are looking after the planes, ensuring every flight is given our equal and full attention.' His work 'is about resolving information on screens'. Sean says he's not an 'aviation nerd' by any means. While many ATCs fly and love planes, many others have the skills and knowledge required 'without a passion for aircraft'. Howard's career in air traffic control began just after high school, when he discovered the ATC Learning Academy in Tasmania where he grew up. At 17, he applied, completed the aptitude testing and interview, and started training. He began work in Melbourne at the start of 1994 and has worked as air traffic controller, line manager and supervisor. ATC 'is the only profession I have ever had and I look forward to coming to work every day'. Costin, the Melbourne Aerodrome head, said air traffic control was 'about task completion'. 'Identify the issue, solve it, even if it means handing a task off to the right person ... do that, then move on.' 'Controllers need to be able to take multi-inputs – they need to be able to multi-task.' It's also about decent pay. It's one of the few roles that can attract a six-digit starting salary for a qualified worker. There is no single background that prepares or forms the ideal personality for the work. Costin, who began her career as an elementary school teacher, said other jobs people have done before coming to air traffic control included being a military air traffic controller, police officers, firefighters, teachers, and even a croupier. O'Keefe, the line leader, says: 'It takes a certain personality that can take direction and work with others.' The ability to prioritise information is key. O'Keefe says air traffic controllers take two hours to tell a joke. 'They can start the joke, pause to complete a separate task, then come back to the joke, pause again for another task, and then come back to the same spot they left in the joke, and finish it.' 'This takes a certain personality,' she said. Although a calm prevails in the air traffic control centre, the upgrade of a system supporting 155 million passenger movements a year has experienced some turbulence. ASA's contract with French-company Thales, the maker of the joint civil-military air traffic management system (CMATS), has been audited three times by the Australian National Audit Office. From February 2018 to the end of 2024, OneSKY has added $160 million in cost overruns on a $1.2 billion contract. Thales' delivery of some elements of the contract had been slowed by COVID lockdowns, which prevented work being done onsite. Loading The complexity and stakes require years of testing to ensure the equipment and controllers gel into a seamless process. On the day the media visited, a handful of engineers were scattered through the brighter OneSky ATSC room. They were doing checks on the system – with access to live data inputs – but unable to output commands. The next step, ASA says, will be to bring over air traffic controllers into the new by 2027 for onsite testing. At that time, the lights will be dimmed, and the complexity of the work – along with the needed calm – will take up a new home within the Melbourne complex.
The Age
28 minutes ago
- The Age
Australia aviation: Air traffic control - what it takes to be part of team monitoring 3.9 million aircraft movements
Melbourne Aerodrome and Airspace Services head Leanne Costin says: 'If you are tapping your foot on the floor, or if you're fidgeting and nervous as you do the work, this is not the job for you. 'You can't be stressed doing this.' Calm and controlled. And alert: there are far more coffee mugs in the tower than controllers on duty. An espresso machine can be seen. The casual dress code is almost like out of a tech start-up: lanyards, business shirts, jeans, hoodies, shorts and thongs, even. What counts is the quality of work. The tower is fully staffed at about 6am and until about 9pm and then it and when it goes into overnight schedule. Under bright lights: Testing the new OneSKY system. Credit: AARON FRANCIS There are two bedrooms in the Melbourne control tower – one on the seventh floor and another down on the ground floor – for a quick nap. Air traffic controllers who have had a busy night, for example, can recharge before they get on the road to drive home. Having a dedicated place for a quick nap is part of a fatigue management plan. There are 902 civilian air traffic controllers in the country, and they all work for Airservices Australia; it holds a monopoly on firefighting services at airports, too, also employing just over 1000 firefighters at airport's nationwide. ASA is a government-owned entity that raises money from fees charged to the airlines for its services. It's a big job. ASA is responsible for 11 per cent of the world's airspace that runs up across Australia and out west across the Indian Ocean to Mauritius and Colombo. The organisation conducted 3.9 million aircraft movements – take-offs, landings, midair direction – in 2024. This isn't only air traffic approaching and departing airports, but aircraft en route, at 38,000 feet, crossing the continent or travelling to and from Asia, North and South America, and Africa. The office place calm of Melbourne and Brisbane, where the other air traffic control centre is located, is shielded from outside disruptions. ASA faces a number of obstacles that can buffet the organisation: not only does its ageing equipment need upgraded, commercial aviation's post-COVID bounce back has increased the workload. Uncrewed aircraft and drones are also beginning to fill Australia's skies. Adding to the complexity stew, the military has 12 bases around the country that have functioned as their own 'islands' of air traffic control within Australia. Airservices Australia CEO Rob Sharp notes that improvements at airports will increase capacity for terminals and airlines in Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne, where a third runway is being built. Sydney is getting a fresh new airport with Western Sydney International coming online next year. But infrastructure support services needed to accommodate growth are in some cases '30 or 40 years' old, Sharp said. Systems supervisor Sean Howard. Credit: AARON FRANCIS For this reason, the government was looking ahead when in 2009 it ordered Airservices Australia and the Department of Defence to work to harmonise the control of civilian and military aerospace. The goal is to build operational resilience, safety and increase efficiency by reducing the amount of system-to-system co-ordination and double-ups. ASA's decision to back the OneSKY project, a plan to fuse civil and military air control, is 'globally quite unique', Sharp said on one afternoon at the Melbourne facility. AirServices Australia anticipates that it will save $2.7 billion over 20 years – once the long-delayed program is fully operational. 'When you look at the geopolitics, I think this system will really stand Australia in good stead,' said Sharp. Loading China's decision to conduct naval drills in the Tasman Sea in February is a vivid example. Australia first learnt of it through a Virgin pilot who flagged it with air traffic controllers. Sharp says OneSKY will create more backbone for air control during climate-related events, too. Should a cyclone force the closure of one facility, another air traffic control centre can temporarily provide cover over the network. It 'gives us a lot more resilience to the weather that is occurring'. Most controllers aren't up in the tower but downstairs at Air Traffic Service Centre, a much larger room on the ground of the ASA's compound, on the far side of Melbourne's Airport, away from the terminals and parking. There are banks of radio scopes where the controllers sit, directing the air traffic over Australia, which itself is spliced up into smaller sectors. The vibe is alert but calm. The overhead lights are slightly dimmed. The intensity of fluorescent bulbs is reduced so that it doesn't wear out the eyes of air traffic controllers, who work for about two hours and then take a one-hour break, and then another two hours so they remain fresh for the entire process. Airservices Australia CEO Rob Sharp. Credit: AARON FRANCIS To look closely at the screens, laid out in four banks, there's so much information overlapping that it looks, when zoomed out, like smudges of coal. It's only when you zoom in, and continue to zoom in, you can see the smudging is a cluster of symbols for aircraft in motion on the screen. The amount of information and communication is intense. From the time a flight pushes off from Sydney to the time it arrives at the gate in Melbourne, it would be passed through the hands of 14 controllers and five supervisors. As a systems supervisor, Sean Howard monitors the consoles used by the air traffic controllers. He will both react to and prepare for changes, including if there is a technology issue that affects coverage, for example, a radar malfunction. Howard said his work is 'like a triage doctor in an emergency room – we have to adapt to any issue'. The banks of radio scopes correspond to the geography in the country and beyond. On one row, there is coverage for Adelaide, Tasmania, then Melbourne, Sydney, then the Northwest, west and south of Melbourne, the Grampians area. And then there's Perth, whose aerospace has its own unique challenges because it accommodates fly in, fly out traffic which follows surges on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Howard said: 'Controllers try not to focus too much on thinking about the number of people they are looking after [on board the planes].' 'Rather we are part of the overall industry team, the pilots and airline staff are looking after the people on the plane and we are looking after the planes, ensuring every flight is given our equal and full attention.' His work 'is about resolving information on screens'. Sean says he's not an 'aviation nerd' by any means. While many ATCs fly and love planes, many others have the skills and knowledge required 'without a passion for aircraft'. Howard's career in air traffic control began just after high school, when he discovered the ATC Learning Academy in Tasmania where he grew up. At 17, he applied, completed the aptitude testing and interview, and started training. He began work in Melbourne at the start of 1994 and has worked as air traffic controller, line manager and supervisor. ATC 'is the only profession I have ever had and I look forward to coming to work every day'. Costin, the Melbourne Aerodrome head, said air traffic control was 'about task completion'. 'Identify the issue, solve it, even if it means handing a task off to the right person ... do that, then move on.' 'Controllers need to be able to take multi-inputs – they need to be able to multi-task.' It's also about decent pay. It's one of the few roles that can attract a six-digit starting salary for a qualified worker. There is no single background that prepares or forms the ideal personality for the work. Plenty of coffee mugs in the control tower. Credit: AARON FRANCIS Costin, who began her career as an elementary school teacher, said other jobs people have done before coming to air traffic control included being a military air traffic controller, police officers, firefighters, teachers, and even a croupier. O'Keefe, the line leader, says: 'It takes a certain personality that can take direction and work with others.' The ability to prioritise information is key. O'Keefe says air traffic controllers take two hours to tell a joke. 'They can start the joke, pause to complete a separate task, then come back to the joke, pause again for another task, and then come back to the same spot they left in the joke, and finish it.' 'This takes a certain personality,' she said. Although a calm prevails in the air traffic control centre, the upgrade of a system supporting 155 million passenger movements a year has experienced some turbulence. ASA's contract with French-company Thales, the maker of the joint civil-military air traffic management system (CMATS), has been audited three times by the Australian National Audit Office. From February 2018 to the end of 2024, OneSKY has added $160 million in cost overruns on a $1.2 billion contract. Thales' delivery of some elements of the contract had been slowed by COVID lockdowns, which prevented work being done onsite. Loading The complexity and stakes require years of testing to ensure the equipment and controllers gel into a seamless process. On the day the media visited, a handful of engineers were scattered through the brighter OneSky ATSC room. They were doing checks on the system – with access to live data inputs – but unable to output commands.
7NEWS
2 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Sha'Carri Richardson arrested after allegedly assaulting partner Christian Coleman at airport
Reigning 100m world champion Sha'Carri Richardson was arrested last weekend for allegedly assaulting her fellow sprinting star partner Christian Coleman at an airport, it has emerged. Richardson was arrested at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport last Sunday on a fourth-degree domestic violence offense, according to a police report obtained by The Associated Press. The 25-year-old was booked into the South Correctional Entity in Des Moines, Washington at 6.54pm last Sunday and released at 1.13pm on Monday. On Thursday, she ran in the opening round of the women's 100m at the US track and field championships. Richardson has an automatic bye to the world championships in September in Tokyo as the defending champion. 'USATF is aware of the reports and is not commenting on this matter,' USA Track and Field said in a statement. Richardson's agent did not immediately reply to an email request for comment. The police report said an officer at the airport was notified by a Transportation Security Administration supervisor of a disturbance between Richardson and Coleman. The officer reviewed camera footage and observed Richardson reach out with her left arm and grab Coleman's backpack and yank it away. Richardson then appeared to get in Coleman's way with Coleman trying to step around her. Coleman was shoved into a wall. The report later said Richardson appeared to throw an item at Coleman, which the TSA indicated may have been headphones. In the police report, the officer said: 'I was told Coleman did not want to participate any further in the investigation and declined to be a victim.' Richardson won the 100m final at the 2023 world championships in Budapest and finished with silver at the Paris Olympics last summer, but won gold in the 4x100m relay. She had a positive marijuana test at the 2021 US Olympic trials and didn't compete at the Tokyo Olympics. Coleman, 29, was the 100m world champion in 2019 and later served an anti-doping ban for missing drug tests. He finished fifth in the men's 100m final at the US track and field championships on Saturday.
