Five air traffic controllers at Sydney Airport were on high alert when two passenger planes narrowly escaped a collision!
Low Intensity Type B,
Low Intensity Twin B,
low A obstacle light,
LED frangible flange,
On July 27, 2026, a serious near-collision occurred at Sydney Airport in Australia between two Qantas aircraft.
According to internal records and recorded conversations obtained by Reuters, several air traffic controllers on duty at the time of the incident had been flagged by the system as facing a "high risk of fatigue." A shift manager described the staffing situation at the time as "a bit crazy" in an internal call.
At the time, a Qantas turboprop aircraft that was landing nearly collided with a Qantas Boeing 737 that had already been cleared to cross the runway.
This incident was the first of six near-collisions at Sydney Airport in about a month, and it once again brought the issue of staffing amid a global shortage of air traffic controllers into sharp focus.
Internal logs show that of the 10 controllers on duty at the time of the incident, 5 were rated "H" (high risk) in the Australian fatigue management system, 1 was rated "M" (medium risk), 1 was rated "L" (low risk), and the remaining 3 were not assessed as having a fatigue risk.
In an internal call following the near miss, a shift manager told air traffic control officials, "We had five high-risk fatigued personnel this morning, it's a bit crazy."
He added, "Thank God they didn't crash, but they were very close, everyone here was terrified."
The recording shows that of the three controllers directly involved in the incident, two were in a state of "high fatigue" and the third was in a state of "moderate fatigue."
The fatigue risk ratings of the controllers involved and the content of the internal call had not been previously reported.
Airservices Australia declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is investigating all six near misses to determine if there were any common safety issues or contributing factors.
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