Hundreds Of Passengers Grounded Around Australia And New Zealand As Virgin Australia, Jetstar, Qantas, Air New Zealand, And Others Delay 545 And Cancel 21 Flights, Disrupting Canberra, Brisbane, Perth, Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Christchurch, And Wellington

Home » Latest Travel News » Hundreds Of Passengers Grounded Around Australia And New Zealand As Virgin Australia, Jetstar, Qantas, Air New Zealand, And Others Delay 545 And Cancel 21 Flights, Disrupting Canberra, Brisbane, Perth, Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Christchurch, And Wellington

Published on
February 7, 2026

Hundreds of passengers stranded across Australia and New Zealand as Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra, Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington faced 566 delays and flight cancellations. The airlines most affected by operational disruptions included QantasLink (15 delays, 12 cancellations), Virgin Australia (105 delays, 3 cancellations), Jetstar (94 delays, 1 cancellation), Qantas (42 delays, 1 cancellation), and Air New Zealand (43 delays, 1 cancellation). Other widely used carriers that also experienced delays, despite not being among the most affected overall, included Malaysia Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Singapore Airlines, and China Eastern.
At the airport level, the highest disruption volumes were recorded at Sydney (166 delays, 7 cancellations) and Melbourne (155 delays, 4 cancellations), followed by Brisbane (92 delays, 2 cancellations), Perth (45 delays, 4 cancellations), and Auckland (44 delays, 1 cancellation). Smaller but still notable impacts were observed at Canberra (14 delays, 3 cancellations), Christchurch (17 delays, 0 cancellations), and Wellington (12 delays, 0 cancellations).

Updated today: Today’s network-wide disruption across Australia and New Zealand resulted in 545 delays and 21 cancellations.Sydney Airport recorded the highest number of delays (166) and cancellations (7).Melbourne Airport followed closely with 155 delays and 4 cancellations.QantasLink experienced the highest number of cancellations across the network.Virgin Australia and Jetstar together accounted for a significant share of total delays.No US-linked delays were recorded at Brisbane, Perth, Canberra, Christchurch, or Wellington.Most Affected AirportsSydney Airport

Sydney recorded 166 delays and 7 cancellations, making it the most disrupted airport in the dataset. QantasLink, Qantas, Virgin Australia, and Jetstar accounted for a large share of affected flights.

Melbourne Airport

Melbourne logged 155 delays and 4 cancellations, with Jetstar and Virgin Australia showing particularly high delay counts alongside QantasLink.

Brisbane Airport

Brisbane saw 92 delays and 2 cancellations, with Jetstar responsible for the largest portion of delays at the airport.

Perth Airport

Perth reported 45 delays and 4 cancellations, with Network Aviation and Virgin Australia accounting for all recorded cancellations.

Auckland Airport

Auckland experienced 44 delays and 1 cancellation, with Air New Zealand responsible for over half of all delays at the airport.

Airlines Most Affected by Flight Cancellations and DelaysQantasLink

QantasLink recorded 15 delays and 12 cancellations across multiple airports, making it the airline with the highest cancellation count overall.

Virgin Australia

Virgin Australia logged 105 delays and 3 cancellations, with major concentrations at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Perth.

Jetstar

Jetstar experienced 94 delays and 1 cancellation, with heavy disruption at Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane.

Qantas

Qantas recorded 42 delays and 1 cancellation, primarily across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Christchurch.

Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand accounted for 43 delays and 1 cancellation, largely concentrated at Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington.

Malaysia Airlines

Malaysia Airlines faced repeated delays across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, and Auckland, despite no cancellations being recorded.

Regional Express Airlines

Regional Express Airlines saw notable delay percentages at Sydney and Perth, contributing to overall regional network disruption.

What Can Affected Passengers Do?Monitor airline notifications closely, particularly when flying via Sydney, Melbourne, or Brisbane.Allow additional buffer time at airports such as Perth and Auckland, where international services were affected.Check rebooking and refund policies directly with airlines including Qantas, Virgin Australia, and Jetstar.Track flight status frequently, especially at Canberra and Melbourne, where cancellations were recorded.Keep travel documents and insurance details accessible in case of extended delays.

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Overview of Flight Cancellations and Delays

Today’s disruption pattern showed Sydney and Melbourne as the primary pressure points, together accounting for more than 58% of all delays recorded. Brisbane and Perth followed as secondary hubs of disruption, while Auckland represented the most affected airport in New Zealand.
From an airline perspective, QantasLink, Virgin Australia, Jetstar, Qantas, and Air New Zealand consistently appeared across multiple airports with elevated delay counts. International carriers such as Malaysia Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, and Singapore Airlines also experienced delays, particularly at Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, and Auckland.
Overall, the data reflects a broad, multi-airport operational impact, with both domestic and international networks affected across Australia and New Zealand during the same 24-hour period.

Image Source: AI
Source: Different airports and FlightAware

Hundreds Of Passengers Grounded Around Australia And New Zealand As Virgin Australia, Jetstar, Qantas, Air New Zealand, And Others Delay 545 And Cancel 21 Flights, Disrupting Canberra, Brisbane, Perth, Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Christchurch, And Wellington

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