Flight cancellations are causing havoc for travellers at Brisbane Airport, with 50,000 passengers expected to pass through the terminal today.
That number is just shy of the airport's busiest day this year — which saw 56,000 travellers pass through. Another 9,000 people are expected through the international terminal today.
School holiday crowds have added to the congestion, which is expected to increase this weekend.
Ipswich woman Lisa Campbell's nine and 11-year-old daughters have had multiple flights cancelled while travelling as unaccompanied minors on a trip to Canberra.
"I put my kids on a flight last Thursday," Ms Campbell said.
"We pulled up to the airport at 3:15pm and I got an email from them literally as we pulled into the parking lot saying the flight was cancelled and they would not be leaving until 8:30pm that night.
"Then yesterday afternoon on my way to work I got an email saying that again their flight had been cancelled last night. They were supposed to arrive at 9pm last night and it had been cancelled until this morning.
"So they had to be at the airport at 5am this morning, only to get there and find out that Virgin had lost their forms and now they have been told that they cannot get on that flight and they'll reschedule them sometime today.
"They're nervous about flying as it is and this has not helped.
"This has got to change. I understand that things happen but this is not good enough."
Brisbane Airport Corporation's Stephen Beckett said nearly 8 per cent of all scheduled domestic flights had been cancelled from July 1 to 7.
Mr Beckett said the flooding in New South Wales has contributed to the cancellations, along with influenza and COVID case numbers and related worker shortages.
Airlines working 'around the clock'
A Virgin Australia spokesperson said the airline was working "around the clock" to ensure guests got to their destinations.
"Where possible, Virgin Australia is proactively communicating with guests who have been impacted by a schedule change. In the event that we are unable to offer a suitable recovery option, a full refund or travel credit is being offered.
"Airports and airlines globally are experiencing huge demand as travellers return to the sky as pandemic restrictions ease.
Stephen Beckett from Brisbane Airport Corporation said the terminal had so far avoided the chaos seen at southern airports but passenger numbers would continue to build into next week.
"Wait times have been between 10 and 15 minutes most days," he said.
"We expect during the really big days, Saturday and Sunday, that we might be around 20 to 25 minutes, so our strongest advice is to please turn up 90 minutes before your flight."
