Brisbane Airport Chaos as Security Fault Delays Flights

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Hundreds of travellers faced major disruptions at Brisbane Airport on Sunday evening after a metal detector malfunction forced a full evacuation of the Domestic Terminal, causing widespread delays and at least one flight cancellation.

According to Brisbane Airport Corporation, a technical fault in a single metal detector resulted in an operational shutdown of all security screening. As a precaution, all passengers and staff in the Domestic Terminal were ordered to leave the premises and undergo re-screening.

In a statement, the airport said the issue posed no safety or security threat but required a full reset of procedures.

“The fault was quickly identified and there is no safety or security threat,” the statement read. “However, it will take some time to rescreen all passengers and staff, delaying flights. We apologise for the inconvenience and thank passengers for their patience and understanding.”

As a result, passengers were seen lining up in long queues stretching beyond the terminal building. Images from the scene showed frustrated travellers waiting to be re-screened as airport staff worked to restore operations.

Several flights, including those operated by Qantas and Jetstar, were affected. At least five departures were delayed, and one Jetstar flight was cancelled during the peak of the disruption.

One passenger described the experience on social media, saying the entire terminal had ground to a halt around 5:30 pm. “Have just been deplaned to leave and re-screen.The report is that the security screening device was used whilst in fault mode, and thus some passengers were not screened. Now the entire place has ground to a halt,” they posted.

Another traveller reported that the queues were barely moving and warned others to check in with family or friends about expected delays.

By 8:30 pm, the airport issued an update confirming that screening operations were returning to normal. “Thank you to all the airport staff for your work and support,” the statement added.

Importantly, Brisbane Airport’s International Terminal remained unaffected throughout the incident, and flights operating through that section continued as scheduled.

This incident is one of the more disruptive technical failures in recent months at a major Australian airport, highlighting the critical role of airport screening systems in maintaining both security and operational flow.Brisbane Airport authorities have not yet provided additional details about what caused the failure, but emphasised that passenger safety was not compromised.