Melbourne Airport safety personnel allegedly tried to use their vehicles to block a man before they tackled the 25-year-old to prevent him from walking onto a live runway in January, a court has heard.
An airport safety officer first put his vehicle in the path of the man as he began walking onto a live runway on the night of January 20, having already breached two fences to access the airport’s controlled area, a Melbourne court has heard.
The event forced one Qantas flight to abort a landing, while two other flights’ departures were delayed, and comes nearly a year after Home Affairs initiated a review of the nation’s airport security, prompted by an earlier breach at Avalon Airport in Victoria.
After the first officer parked their car in front of him, court documents allege “the accused did not stop and continued to walk around the vehicle toward the runway”.
That prompted a second safety officer to use his car to again try to prevent the man from advancing toward the runway, a summary of allegations submitted by authorities to Melbourne Magistrates’ Court states.
At that point, the second airside safety officer got out of his vehicle and confronted the man, telling him to “stop on multiple occasions which were ignored”. The officer simultaneously notified the air traffic control tower via radio to stop an incoming Qantas flight from landing.
The plane conducted a “go around” loop over the airport.
Meanwhile, the second officer “pushed the accused to further alert him to stop”.
Court documents state the second officer then took the man to the ground, restraining his feet and putting his hands behind his back. Police arrived and arrested the man a short time after. He was charged with endangering the safety of the aerodrome, as well as trespassing on Commonwealth land.
At the time of the arrest, the AFP said the “man was then transported to Northern Hospital under section 232 of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Act”. He was assessed via video call by a doctor at the Victoria Institute of Forensic Medicine and deemed unfit for an interview, court documents show.
The man is yet to enter a plea and a committal mention is scheduled for April 30.
The Australian Federal Police and the Melbourne Airport team “worked collaboratively to safely control and arrest an unauthorised person” on the airfield at Melbourne Airport last month, a spokesperson for the airport said.
“Multi-agency responses such as this highlight the strength of our close operational relationship and co-ordination with all our emergency service providers along with the Department of Home Affairs to keep Australia’s busiest 24/7 airport protected,” the spokesperson said.
Melbourne Airport “continues to invest in enhanced security measures”.
Security at Australia’s airports has taken on a new priority after an unrelated incident at Victoria’s Avalon Airport in March 2025 when a 17-year-old boy accessed the tarmac and boarded a Jetstar flight in an alleged attempt to hijack it.
The youth, who was allegedly armed with guns and a fake explosive device, was overpowered by the pilot and passengers.
In November, a Geelong court agreed to delay the case against the teen until this month, based on a request from the chief commissioner of the Federal Police.
The case triggered an urgent internal review of Avalon’s security. A Department of Home Affairs security review of airport security is still ongoing.
The Australian Airports Association is urging Home Affairs to develop an approach to funding federally mandated aviation security and regulatory requirements, recognising the cost it could place on smaller and regional airports.
The association also supports creating a “permanent, fit-for-purpose funding mechanism” to support regional and remote airports by helping with expenses for running security screening and compliance requirements.
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Chris Zappone is a senior reporter covering aviation and business. He is former digital foreign editor.Connect via X, Facebook or email.