Long delays at Sydney airport for second day as Qantas CEO blames passengers

Travellers faced long waits at Sydney airport for a second day in a row, with the Qantas CE, Alan Joyce, partly blaming customers for not being “match fit”, before later clarifying his comments. Lines at the domestic terminals on Friday snaked all the way to the entry doors, spilling out to the taxi rank at times as more passengers arrived. On Thursday night, the Sydney airport CE, Geoff Culbert, apologised for the delays, blaming “inexperienced” passengers and staff shortages. “We’re facing a perfect storm at the moment. Traffic numbers are picking up, travellers are inexperienced after two years of not travelling, and the close contact rules are making it hard to fill shifts and staff the airport,” he said. Joyce made similar comments on Friday suggesting high “staff absenteeism” due to Covid was partly behind the delays. But he also said passengers were “not match fit” after an extended period of not travelling. “I went through the airports on Wednesday and people forget they need to take out their laptops, they have to take out their aerosols ... so that is taking longer to get through the queue,” he said. However, passengers pointed out that at least three out of eight security lanes were closed at terminal 2 on Friday morning. Joyce later clarified his comments: “Just to be clear, I’m not ‘blaming’ passengers. Of course it’s not their fault. I was asked what the factors were and why queues are so long at airports. And I explained the multiple reasons. I went through airport security this morning myself. Everyone is doing their best including passengers, who are showing incredible patience in these queues. We’re seeing these same pressures at airports around the world and it’s something we’re all working hard to get through.” The airport’s general manager of operations, Greg Hay, said the Easter holiday peak had come while the airport’s security partner, Certis Security Australia, was still rebuilding its workforce.<br/>