On Sunday, August 9th, 2026, two passenger aircraft—a Jetstar A320 and a Qatar Airways Boeing 777—nearly collided on the tarmac at Australia's busiest airport, Sydney Airport. The Jetstar flight was taxiing for takeoff to the Gold Coast in Queensland when its crew noticed the Qatar Airways plane, which was being towed by an aircraft tug, in close proximity on a crossing taxiway, according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB).

"Both aircraft were stopped abruptly," the ATSB said, resulting in a Jetstar cabin crew member being injured while moving through the cabin. Additionally, the connection between the Boeing 777's nose gear and the aircraft tug was damaged.

A Jetstar spokesperson stated, "Our aircraft was following instructions by Air Traffic Control when the pilots were forced to brake firmly after another aircraft came in close proximity." Jetstar, a low-cost subsidiary of Qantas, is conducting its own investigation alongside the ATSB, which is gathering data from the planes, air traffic control, and interviewing crew and tug operators to determine the cause of the near collision.

The incident has also caused delays at Sydney Airport, as reported by government agency Airservices Australia. This event follows widespread delays at the airport the previous day, attributed to Airservices Australia authorizing "departure spacing" due to roster issues with air traffic controllers.

Authorities have called for witnesses at the airport to provide any visual evidence of the incident to assist with the investigation.

Sources