Photos show travel chaos at one of the busiest airports south of the equator with lines snaking hundreds of meters after technical issues and heavy fog
Grace Dean
Sydney Airport was swamped by huge lines on Monday morning.Courtesy of Ben Fisher
- Sydney Airport was swamped by huge lines on Monday morning, with some even snaking outside.
- Technical issues slowed down security, while heavy fog meant some flights were delayed.
Sydney Airport was in chaos on Monday as technical issues caused huge lines for security, while heavy fog meant that some flights were delayed.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Owen Brandt
Huge lines snaked round the airport ...
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Penny McCall Howard
... and even extended outside, where the line was "hundreds of meters" long with thousands of passengers, the Australian Broadcast Corporation and Sky News Australia reported. By around noon, the outside line had cleared, the ABC reported.
Huge lines outside the terminal at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Ben Fisher
Source: The ABC, Sky News Australia
Photos also show passengers lining up in what one Twitter user called a "shed" located next to the terminal.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Ben Fisher
Source: Twitter
"Heavy fog affected flights this morning, and we're temporarily operating one less security lane than normal in T2 due to a technical issue," the airport said in a tweet on Monday morning. Terminal two only serves domestic flights.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Penny McCall Howard
Source: Sydney Airport on Twitter
One Twitter user said it had taken them an hour and a half to get through the airport's security queue.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Ben Fisher
Source: Twitter
Other people tweeted that their flights had been delayed or canceled.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of T. Percy
Sydney Airport has been struggling to cope with rebounding passenger numbers for months. Nearly 2.6 million passengers traveled through the airport in June.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Ben Fisher
"We have significant COVID-related staff shortages and we're working hard to rebuild our workforce in a really tight jobs market," the airport tweeted earlier in July. In early June, the airport said that it had around 5,000 vacancies.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of @Filankisija on Twitter
Sources: Sydney Airport on Twitter, Sydney Airport press release
"Staff shortages are affecting almost every organization at Sydney Airport," it said in another tweet on July 18.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of @Filankisija on Twitter
Source: Sydney Airport on Twitter
Despite the long lines, the airport says that people should still arrive around three hours before international flights and two hours before domestic ones. Thursdays, Fridays, and Mondays are its busiest days.
Huge lines at Sydney Airport on July 25. Courtesy of Ben Fisher
Source: Sydney Airport on Twitter
Have you been affected by current travel disruptions? Or do you work at an airport or for an airline that's swamped by staffing and cancellation chaos? Email this reporter at gdean@insider.com.
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