Bomb cyclone: Sydney Airport chaos as Virgin, Jetstar flights cancelled, down to one runway

The ‘bomb cyclone’ weather front that is consuming the eastern seaboard of Australia is ramping up, with safety officials forcing Sydney Airport to scale back to one operational runway amid flight cancellation chaos.

Millions of residents are being affected by the massive storm front that is hammering large areas of the east coast as Virgin and Jetstar cancel flights and commuters are warned by the SES about the afternoon journey home.

Airservices Australia, the government body responsible for making air traffic safety calls, made the call to shut all but one runway at Sydney Airport.

“Airservices Australia has now enacted single runway operations at Sydney Airport due to strong south-westerly winds,” a statement said.

“This adheres to our International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety regulations for runway usage amid inclement weather.

“Safety is Airservices’ No.1 remit; this decision is purely weather and safety-related to safeguard the travelling public.”

The Bureau of Meteorology has been in close contact with the safety bureau and based their decision on the likelihood of increased dangerous conditions and poor visibility.

“We anticipated this safety call in cooperation with our airline customers and the BOM (Bureau of Meteorology,” the Airservices Australia statement said.

“Airservices has nightly stakeholder meetings to work out an air traffic management plan before the next day’s operations, so airlines and airports were well aware single runway ops were a likely outcome today due to BOM’s inclement weather forecasts.

“Delays are expected; we will continue to work closely with industry to minimise impacts for the travelling public. Decisions regarding flight cancellations are a matter for individual airlines.”

SES and local emergency services have issued warnings as the massive weather front is expected to bring winds tipped to exceed 110km/h, pelting rain and massive surf conditions.

Virgin Australia has cancelled flights, and Jetstar and Qantas have been following suit as the situation deteriorates.

“Some services on Virgin Australia’s network have been impacted by adverse weather in Sydney and Newcastle today,” Virgin Australia said in a statement on Tuesday.

“The safety of our guests and crew is our top priority, and our meteorologists continue to closely monitor the weather system.

“We regret the impact of this on guests’ travel plans and are working hard to ensure they reach their destination safely and as soon as possible.

“We encourage guests travelling today and tomorrow to keep an eye on the status of their flight via our website or app.”

Residents from Coffs Harbour south to Bega are in the path of a fast-moving, severe low-pressure system intensifying off the NSW north coast, and flight routes between the major east coast cities of Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne will all be affected, with the flow-on issues for commuters expected to be significant.

The rapidly deepening system is known as a “bomb cyclone”, although the meteorological term is generally used sparingly so as not to incite panic, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

It has already sparked heavy rain, strong winds and hazardous surf, and up to 120mm of rain is expected to lash Greater Sydney alone over the next six hours.

Virgin representatives said they have been liaising with safety experts at Sydney Airport, who advised that flights should be cancelled.

“We have proactively communicated with all guests travelling in and out of Sydney and Newcastle on Tuesday, 1 July, to advise that their flight may be impacted due to adverse weather,” the Virgin spokesperson said.

“Air Services has enacted its Ground Delay Program at Sydney Airport, resulting in fewer arrivals into Sydney, and cancellations have been made on today’s schedule.”

The airline confirmed that more “delays and cancellations are expected.”

NSW SES state operations manager Dallas Burnes said the emergency calls have already started to roll across the State as the system intensifies.

“We’re already starting to see the impacts - 600 incidents responded to in the last 24 hours and over a thousand of our volunteers out helping their communities already,” he told Nine’s Today program on Tuesday.

“We are really concerned about flash flooding, particularly around the commute home for people this afternoon, as we see those rainfall figures escalate throughout the day,” Mr Burnes warned.

The peak impact of the system is forecast to happen on Wednesday, and there’s a risk of flash flooding at Wallis Lake near Taree on the mid north coast of NSW.

Taree was one of the towns hard hit by floods in May that killed five people and damaged thousands of properties.

Weather warnings have been issued for Taree, Newcastle, Gosford, Sydney, Wollongong and Port Macquarie

The mid north coast region is an area of concern for emergency services because of the soil is still saturated from the May floods.

“If they get those gusts up to 125km an hour, we are going to see trees come down,” Mr Burnes added.

The deepening coastal low will also result in dangerous beach conditions, coastal erosion and damage to the NSW coast from Seal Bay to Batemans Bay, the bureau warned.

The heaviest rain is expected on the state’s central coast, with totals of up to 200mm possible, although a “subtle shift” in conditions could move those falls to Sydney or the mid-north coast.

Coastal communities were being urged to prepare ahead of the storm by tying down loose items and moving cars away from trees.

with AAP / More to come...