Travellers are being advised to arrive even earlier than usual at major Australian airports after a suspected terrorism plot was foiled by Australian Police in Sydney yesterday.
Sydney and Melbourne domestic Airports in particular have today been affected with enhanced security in place causing delays to many departures.
Travellers are being advised by airlines to arrive an extra hour earlier than the standard two hours for international or one hour for domestic flights as extra screening is in place as a precautionary measure.
Looking at the queues in some of these pictures, you may want to get there even earlier.
Extraordinary queues to check in here at Sydney Airport. Not even sure what queue I'm in #SydneyAirport pic.twitter.com/xUBQi2Bonw
— Wendy Carlisle (@Wendycarlisle) July 30, 2017
Heightened security at Sydney airport. Give yourself extra time to clear screening. @SydneyAirport @Qantas well done… very well managed. pic.twitter.com/g6qniWujOC
— Matt (@mattchamley) July 30, 2017
#MelbourneAirport this morning !#atleastitlooksscary pic.twitter.com/yRygexWQV7
— iBrian (@brianinnovates) July 30, 2017
The added security steps are anticipated to last another couple of days, according the the Australian Federal Police.
Virgin Australia also asked passengers to limit carry-on baggage where possible in a statement.
“The travelling public can expect to experience an increased level of security scrutiny at the airport but they should not be concerned about these precautionary measures.”
Virgin Australia
“As the measures place an additional burden on the screening system, it may take a little longer than usual to get through the process.”
Busy #SydneyAirport #T2 #VirginTerminal this morning pic.twitter.com/Zdu2smRCyr
— Ricardo Gonçalves (@BUSINESSricardo) July 30, 2017
Added security is the reason why its all jampacked! I don’t mind, atleast I feel safe flying out of Sydney #SydneyAirport pic.twitter.com/DKtQ9mSrCm
— Ehcor Larino (@ehcor23) July 30, 2017
It’s important to note that the intercepted plot wasn’t one that officials anticipated would have necessarily happened given the security steps already in place, but nevertheless still caused serious alarm for security officials.
Passengers travelling out of Sydney and Melbourne Airports will also see added security personnel in the terminals.