Qantas flights reportedly grounded after security incident at Melbourne Airport

Dozens of domestic flights have been delayed at Melbourne Airport causing chaos for passengers after a reported security breach.

Dozens of domestic flights have been delayed at Melbourne Airport causing chaos for passengers after a reported security breach.

All domestic flights were grounded early on Monday morning, leaving passengers queued up across the airport terminal.

The shutdown was reportedly caused after a passenger passed through security unchecked and needed to be rescreened.

Massive lines were seen at the Qantas gate on Monday. Picture: 7 News,

Passengers are seen waiting to go through security. Picture: 7 News,

A Melbourne Airport spokesman confirmed the security screening process at Qantas Terminal 1 was shut down between 6.25-6.50am.

The spokesman could not confirm the cause of the shutdown as the terminal’s security systems were operated by Qantas.

Dozens of domestic flights have been delayed at Melbourne Airport amid reports of a security breach. Picture: Twitter

Frustrated passengers took to social media on Monday morning to share their frustration at the delays.

Images and video from the airport showed long queues inside of the Qantas domestic terminal.

Campbell Fuller said: “Huge queues at Qantas Melbourne Airport security. Screening seems to be offline”.

He later added about 7am: “Finally an announcement. Qantas is calling passengers for early flights forward in the queues.

Finally an announcement. @Qantas is calling passengers for early flights forward in the queues.
This interruption is bound to cause massive delays all day. pic.twitter.com/ZzlgLrU9zg

— Campbell Fuller (@Skigod) July 16, 2023

“This interruption is bound to cause massive delays all day.”

Domestic flights had been delayed between 20 minutes and almost an hour, according to the Melbourne Airport website.

Destinations such as Sydney, Newcastle, and Cairns had been affected by the delays.

By about 7am flights appeared to be running largely on time, with Sydney-bound flights delayed for about 20 to 30 minutes.

Late last year, more than 200 passengers were removed from a Qantas flight because of a similar incident”.

Qantas has been contacted for comment.