A Qld woman’s hilarious airport reunion video has gone viral and delighted millions

Footage of a Queensland woman running through an airport dressed as an enormous koala to welcome unsuspecting family members home has gone viral.

A video of a Queensland woman running through an airport dressed as a giant koala as she welcomes her unsuspecting sister’s home has gone viral.

The video shows Noosa woman Janelle Spies, 33, decked out in a life-size, inflatable koala costume with her arms stretched out and running through the Brisbane Domestic Airport to greet her two sisters, who each flew into Brisbane on the same day.

Chelsea Bartlett, 29, was the first to arrive and can be seen saying “Oh my gosh” – with a look she later described as “mortified” on her face – as the giant marsupial ran towards her and jumped up and down as they hugged.

Janelle Spies, 33, of Noosa, hiding around the corner while waiting to welcome her two unsuspecting sisters home from the USA at the Brisbane Domestic Airport. Picture: Supplied

Janelle Spies runs through the Brisbane Domestic Airport as a koala to surprise her sisters in this screenshot from a now viral video. Picture: Supplied

A couple of hours later, Katie Bartlett, 37, can be seen laughing as the enormous koala and once again pranced through the airport to welcome their older sister home.

Titled “When your sisters live in America and you welcome them back to the Land Down Under”, the video has racked up about four million views and thousands of comments across Instagram and Facebook since September 26.

Janelle was joined at the airport by her children Myla, 10, Azalea, 9, Elsie, 5 and Zeke, 4, who greeted their aunts at the gate so her absence was not noticed at first.

Her father, Greg Bartlett, 62, of Kybong, filmed the first koala-ity airport greeting though, Janelle said, he “was pretending I didn’t exist” while waiting for the planes to land.

A "mortified" Chelsea Bartlett hugs her sister Janelle, in the koala costume, at the Brisbane airport in this screenshot from a now viral video. Janelle dressed as a koala to surprise her sisters. Picture: Supplied

Chelsea, of Fitzgerald, Georgia, Katie and her 4-year-old daughter, Quinn, of Paris, Texas, flew from Dallas, Texas into Sydney on the same flight but were booked on separate domestic flights to Brisbane.

Janelle said her younger sister’s reaction was “fantastic” while their older sister laughed and cried.

“I chucked the suit on right there in the terminal,” she said.

“I just started running and there were so many people I had to run through, so I decided it was all out now so I started yelling ‘Chelsea, Chelsea’ and that’s when she realised and was mortified.

“She’s not an attention person, she’s very chilled and laid back.”

Katie Bartlett said she Quinn were supposed to arrive first but their flight got cancelled.

She fought to get another one on the same day, so was already tired and emotional by the time they landed in Brisbane.

Greg Bartlett, 62, takes a selfie with his daughter Janelle Spies and two of her daughters as she gets ready at the Brisbane domestic airport to surprise her two unsuspecting sisters on September 26. Picture: Supplied

After hugging everyone else, Katie said she heard Chelsea yelling for her to look.

“I look up and saw this giant grey blob, a koala running towards us,” she said.

“I just started laughing – it was just so Janelle.

“It was good because it made me laugh and cry and really lightened a really stressful 24 hours of travel.

“In the video, I’m saying ‘Why am I crying over a koala?’”

Janelle said she came up with the idea of dressing up after seeing similar reels online of people dressed in dinosaur costumes and wearing them to shops or airports.

“My youngest sister hasn’t been home for almost five years … so I thought, I’ve gotta make this fun and thought how funny it would be if I dressed up at the airport,” she said.

Ben Bartlett, 39, of Melbourne, with his sisters, Chelsea Bartlett, 29, of Fitzgerald, Georgia, USA, Janelle Spies, 33, of Noosa and Katie Bartlett, 37, of Paris, Texas, USA. The siblings were recently reunited for the first time in years as they came together for a family wedding. Picture: Supplied

“Originally I wanted a kangaroo, but I couldn’t find one. Then I came across the koala and it was better because only my face could be seen … I wanted to actually look like one.

“If I was going to do this it had to be completely out there.”

The content creator, who has 36,000 Instagram and almost 4,000 Facebook followers, said her husband, Lewis, 34, was “mortified” and said ‘I’m not going to be there’.”

Janelle said her siblings were arriving for a family wedding, with brother Ben Bartlett, 39, arriving from Melbourne the next day.

“I think he’s pretty thankful for that as he also does not like attention,” she chuckled.

The Spies family, from Noosa on the Sunshine Coast. Lewis, 34, with his wife Janelle, 33, and their children, Myla, 10, Azalea, 9, Elsie, 5, and Zeke, 4. Picture: Supplied

Peter Doherty, Brisbane Airport spokesman, said it was not the first time someone had dressed in a costume to welcome loved ones.

“Airports are all about connection, and over the past year, Brisbane Airport has welcomed 22.6 million passengers through our doors,” he said.

“Every day, we witness countless heartwarming reunions — those magical ‘Love Actually’ moments.

“From loved ones dressing up as koalas, dinosaurs, unicorns, bunnies, and even hippos, they create unforgettable surprises for family and friends, making reunions truly special.”