Sydney airport runway conflict rate 20% above Australian average, ATSB finds

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau says Sydney Airport has recorded the highest rate of conflict per aircraft movement in Australia since the COVID-19 pandemic, about 20% above the national average. The finding comes from an independent statistical analysis of runway incidents at the country's major airports between 2016 and 2026.

It was released while the ATSB is separately investigating six incidents at the airport between July and August of this year, a body of work that includes scrutiny of air traffic control staffing.

Presenting four preliminary reports, the bureau classified a near collision on 27 July involving two Qantas aircraft as one of the most serious runway incursions in its history. A Boeing 737 and a Dash 8 came within about 120 metres (394 feet) of each other.

ATSB commissioner Angus Mitchell told a press conference that the near collision was assessed at the most serious level of the international scale, and that it is only the third incident of that kind in Australia since records began in 2003. Earlier reporting indicated that several air traffic controllers on duty during the operations had been identified as being at high risk of fatigue.

Another case under formal ATSB investigation, recorded in August, involved an Airbus A320 operated by Jetstar. The aircraft had to brake abruptly while taxiing to avoid colliding with a Boeing 777.