Near misses at Sydney airport 20% above national average, accident investigator finds

SYDNEY, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Sydney Airport has the highest rate of near misses in Australia, with incidents about 20% above the national average, the country's air accident investigator has found.

The finding comes as the Australian Transport Safety Bureau also investigates six incidents at the airport between July and August this year, with air traffic controller staffing a key focus.

Releasing four preliminary reports on Wednesday, the bureau said a near miss between two Qantas QAN.AX aircraft on July 27 was one of the most serious "runway incursions" in its history.

According to the ATSB, a Boeing 737 and a Bombardier DHC-8 missed colliding with each other by only 120 metres (394 feet).

"A near collision between a Dash 8 and a Boeing 737 has been assessed as a runway incursion - the most serious level on the international scale, and only the third such incident in Australia since our records began in 2003," ATSB Commissioner Angus Mitchell told a news conference.

Reuters previously reported that several air traffic controllers on duty had been flagged as facing a high risk of fatigue.

Another incident in August under investigation involved a taxiing Jetstar A320 abruptly braking to avoid hitting an empty Qatar Airways Boeing 777 under tow. A Jetstar flight attendant broke their wrist as a result of the rapid stop, it said.

Qantas, which also operates Jetstar, said in a statement that safety was its top priority and it was working closely with authorities and the industry to improve air traffic control operations at Sydney Airport.

"Australian aviation operates under a highly sophisticated network of safety controls and we remain confident in those systems," said Mark Cameron, the airline's head of operational safety, in a statement.

The ATSB said its preliminary reports did not contain findings or analysis, which would come once they were finalised.

But it was reviewing air traffic controller shortages as a line of inquiry, Mitchell said.

"Staff resourcing within Sydney Tower has emerged as a recurring line of inquiry ... specifically the practice of combining operational roles, the routine reliance on overtime to fill shifts and training or supervision activities being conducted alongside operational duties," he said.

A separate statistical analysis from the ATSB of runway incidents at Australia's major airports between 2016 and 2026 found Sydney recorded the highest "confliction rate" per aircraft movement since the COVID-19 pandemic, at about 20% above the national average.

Airservices Australia, the federal agency responsible for managing Australia's air traffic, ​has said it was taking ⁠steps to recruit more air traffic controllers and make it easier to call on additional staff when needed.