Sydney airport experiences heavy delays and near-miss incident due to air traffic controller shortages

Sydney Airport is experiencing significant operational challenges due to a critical shortage of air traffic controllers who are overworked and exhausted. These staffing issues have led to over 150 flight delays and contributed to a near-collision incident between a Jetstar and Qatar Airways plane, revealing the fragility of the airport's current rostering system. The problem is compounded by difficult recruitment barriers, including a challenging aptitude test and mandatory training in Melbourne for new controllers.