Sydney and other airports have experienced delays caused by problems with the electronic smart-gate passport processing

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A nationwide security outage believed to be linked to Australian Border Force terminals is causing delays at airports across Australia.

The outage caused delays of between 15 and 30 minutes at airports including Sydney and Brisbane on Monday morning.

By 11am the outage was still affecting a number of airports, though some, including Melbourne, said the system had begun working again.

In Sydney, the delays, related to the smart-gate passport processing at international departures, were about half an hour during the morning peak.

At Brisbane airport, delays began at about 6am but were only about 15 minutes for outbound passengers as a result of issues affecting smart gates.

Strong winds force flight cancellations at Sydney airport Read more

Australian Border Force has been contacted for comment.

There were unrelated delays at Sydney’s domestic terminals on Monday morning after Jetstar reported cancellations and late flights coming in and out of Sydney because of strong winds.

Douglas Abdiel (@dougabdiel) The start of the queue to get into international departures, we are all wondering if 2 hr early is enough. #sydneyairport pic.twitter.com/E64adpC6fj

“Strong winds are affecting some domestic flights in and out of Sydney airport today,” the airline said in a statement. “As a result, several domestic services have been cancelled ... We appreciate delays are frustrating, however safety is our highest priority.”

Hundreds of flights were cancelled or delayed in Sydney over the weekend as a result of heavy winds cause by a cold front moving over eastern New South Wales, leaving thousands of passengers stranded.

On Sunday, only one runway was operating in Sydney due to the high winds, causing widespread delays across domestic and international flights.

However, all three runways had reopened by the evening.

Ten🍀C96 1日目西ら-08a (@eternals) Line to get to the departure secuirty/boarding.....at #sydneyairport ......😱💀 pic.twitter.com/QHGYeEUw1A