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Home / Travel

Woman stopped on Canberra Airport tarmac trying to board Qantas flight

NZ Herald
2 Nov, 2023 07:05 PM2 mins to read

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It is unlikely National and Act will be able to form a government alone, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says it is working around the clock to ensure exit efforts from Gaza and the Beatles release final single Now and Then which was 45 years in the making. Video / NZ Herald / Getty / AP

A woman who walked out onto the runway of Canberra Airport on Wednesday has been arrested by Australian Federal Police.

The traveller allegedly attempted to board the domestic QantasLink flight to Adelaide when she ventured onto the tarmac to stop the plane leaving.

The incident was witnessed by onlookers travelling through the Australian Capital Territory’s main transport hub, many of whom assumed she was running very late.

Airport police from the AFP said the woman was arrested at around 7.30pm.

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The Herald understands that the woman was not a Qantas customer and did hold a booking for the Adelaide flight.

Mild chaos at #CanberraAirport tonight. #runwaymodel ? 😛 #securitybreach pic.twitter.com/JEVaj9Omnr

— Dennis Bilic (@TheFullDen) November 1, 2023

One witness, Dennis Billic, described the incident as “mild chaos”.

Others said it was “lucky the pilot was warned or spotted her and killed the engine”.

Simon Hales, who was on a departing flight, had a clear view of the errant passenger assumed she had “missed her flight and decided she could still catch it”.

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The woman was seen standing beneath the starboard door of the QantasLink A320, apparently hoping it would open.

The Qantas Link flight to Adelaide was delayed 10 minutes after a late passenger ran out on the tarmac. Photo / Simon Hales, Facebook
The Qantas Link flight to Adelaide was delayed 10 minutes after a late passenger ran out on the tarmac. Photo / Simon Hales, Facebook

In a Facebook post, Hales described how she “pushed past the staff at the door, ran down onto the tarmac and ran up to the plane”.

He was surprised that the traveller got as far onto the runway without anyone stopping her.

Flights at the airport were held for just 10 minutes before returning to scheduled service.

Airport meltdowns

The woman’s runway meltdown is possibly the strangest thing to be seen from the portholes of grounded planes since last month, when a woman was seen throwing $10,000 in cash over the forecourt at Vienna Airport.

The Vienna meltdown was recorded by onlookers after the traveller and her companion were deplaned from an EVA service from Heathrow to Bangkok after their behaviour forced crew to divert to the Austrian airport.

Fellow passengers said that the couple had got into an argument on the plane and were “loudly discussing money”. The woman claimed to have £5000 ($10,250) in cash on her person, cash she began throwing in fistfulls at her male travel companion when they were kicked off the plane.

This story was updated at 11:40am, 3 November to reflect the fact the woman was not a Qantas customer.

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