Sydney Airport Runway Conflict in July Deemed One of Australia's Most Severe

A near-collision at Sydney Airport in July has been deemed one of the most severe runway conflicts since record-keeping began more than 20 years ago, air safety investigators say.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) on Wednesday released four preliminary reports related to six incidents that occurred at Kingsford Smith Airport between July and August.

The reports do not make findings or recommendations, but outline the sequence of events and key operational context at the time of the incidents.

ATSB Commissioner Angus Mitchell said the first of the incidents, involving two Qantas aircraft in July, had been deemed a "Category A runway incursion".

"In all six incidents, safety defences operated in some form; air traffic controllers, pilots or ground crew acted to prevent more serious outcomes," Mr Mitchell said.

On July 27, a "breakdown of coordination" led an air traffic controller to clear a Boeing 737 (QF124) carrying 157 people to cross a runway as a QantasLink Bombardier (QLK424D) with 55 people onboard was landing.

The interim report said the air controller who issued the clearance had a "high predicted fatigue risk level" when a brief handover was given to another controller while they went on break.

"[The 737] had stopped before reaching the intersection of runway 34L and runway 25 but was within the runway surface area past the runway stop bars, resulting in a runway incursion," the report said.

"[The Bombardier] came to a stop prior to the runway 34L and 25 runway intersection. When both aircraft came to a stop, they were approximately 120 m apart."

The report also said that, at the time of the occurrence, Sydney's air traffic control tower was operating with high predicted fatigue levels for four out of seven controllers.

"Whilst an elevated fatigue risk does not necessarily mean a controller was fatigued, or that fatigue affected performance, we are, however, examining the effectiveness of the measures that were in place to manage this pre-identified risk," Mr Mitchell said.

Mr Mitchell said roster modelling by Airservices Australia had predicted an "elevated fatigue risk" for staff on many of the days in which conflicts occurred between July 27 and August 25.

Mr Mitchell said while staff resourcing was not determined as the direct cause of the occurrences, the ATSB would investigate whether the practice of combining operational roles and an over-reliance on overtime to fill shifts were underlying factors.

Safety investigators are broadening their scope to compare levels of similar occurrences across Australian airports between 2016 and 2026 to ascertain whether the incidents at Sydney Airport were localised or reflected a broader national trend.

Mr Mitchell said between July and August this year there had been 11 ground incidents reported at Sydney Airport, including the six currently under investigation.

Sydney also reported double the annual average of "information and procedural errors" compared to other major airports nationally, he said.

An interim report has also been released into a near-miss at Sydney Airport on August 9.

"Nationally, occurrence rates have remained steady over the past decade, at Sydney, however, ground conflictions attributed to ATC actions have increased since the COVID-19 recovery," Mr Mitchell said.

"It's not just these incidents, we have seen those impacts at times with delays in flights [and] at times some of the stressors within the system and the flow on effects."

A spokesperson for Airservices Australia said in a statement it would review the interim reports and the findings once the investigations were concluded, but "safety remains our number one priority".

A spokesperson for CASA said Australia's aviation network and Sydney Airport remained safe.

"Having reviewed the ATSB's preliminary reports, CASA remains of the view that none of the incidents indicate and immediate safety risk. If action was needed, it would have been taken," the spokesperson said.

Qantas spokesman Captain Mark Cameron, head of operational safety, said the company remained confident in Australia's "highly sophisticated network of safety controls".

"We are working closely with Airservices Australia, the ATSB and the broader aviation industry to help improve air traffic control operations at Sydney Airport.," he said in a statement.

Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Catherine King, said the preliminary reports highlighted that every opportunity should be taken to improve aviation safety.

"Addressing operational and workforce challenges is critical to ensuring safe, reliable and resilient air traffic control services for the flying public," she said.

The final findings on the July 27 incident, as well as the two on August 9 and August 18, could take up to 12 months to be delivered.