iscover
Adelaide Airport has seen major flight delays due to a security breach on Monday morning.
FlightRadar24 data showed that average departure delays were just over an hour as of around 1:45pm on Monday following the incident, which forced the evacuation of the airport’s passenger terminal and is currently under investigation.
This content is available exclusively to Australian Aviation members.
A monthly membership is only $5.99 or save with our annual plans.
- Australian Aviation quarterly print & digital magazines
- Access to In Focus reports every month on our website
- Unlimited access to all Australian Aviation digital content
- Access to the Australian Aviation app
- Australian Aviation quarterly print & digital magazines
- Access to In Focus reports every month on our website
- Access to our Behind the Lens photo galleries and other exclusive content
- Daily news updates via our email bulletin
- Unlimited access to all Australian Aviation digital content
- Access to the Australian Aviation app
- Australian Aviation quarterly print & digital magazines
- Access to In Focus reports every month on our website
- Access to our Behind the Lens photo galleries and other exclusive content
- Daily news updates via our email bulletin
Australian Aviation understands that passengers on a QantasLink flight from Kingscote – an unscreened airport – were able to enter Adelaide Airport without proper screening at around 11am. The blunder led to huge queues for security re-screening after hundreds of passengers were made to leave the terminal.
“The breach is understood to be the result of passengers arriving on a regional flight entering the terminal without being adequately screened,” the airport said in a statement.
“An orderly evacuation of the terminal has been undertaken and re-screening of passengers will commence shortly.
“There are likely to be some flight delays as a result, and passengers are asked to check with their carrier for the latest flight information. We apologise to our customers impacted this morning and appreciate their patience and understanding.”
Heres a way to have fun; "security breach" at Adelaide airport! Everyone has to leave for rescreening! Even those on planes about to depart..🙄 And we were 20 minutes off. Oh, dear, 3 hour delays, maybe. pic.twitter.com/nljnvwQkWG
— Bill Nosworthy (@BillNosworthy) July 29, 2024
When you’re almost home and there’s been a security breach inside the terminal and all staff have to stop work and get security scanned again. So you get to sit and stare longingly at the airbridge😂🤦🏼♂️#adelaide #adelaideairport pic.twitter.com/xMoTSUoPZE
— JP (@JP_live) July 29, 2024
Roy Abraham, a passenger at Adelaide Airport, told the ABC that he had been about to board when the announcement was made.
“I was probably going to board in about a minute’s time and then this happened so there were probably people already on the plane who had to get off too,” he said.
“All the pilots had to get off the planes as well, so there was probably thousands of people behind me. We weren’t really sure what was going on, there was a lot of chatter as you can imagine.”
Adelaide Airport previously experienced a similar breach in 2021.
