On a scale of one to ten, just how badly do you want to catch your flight? For one woman in Australia that figure seems to be 100, as she breached airport security and ran onto the tarmac to flag down the aircraft of her missed flight.
The incident occurred in Canberra Airport (CBR) on the evening of November 1, 2023.
Video footage of the bizarre episode was captured and uploaded to various social media platforms. The woman can be seen chasing the aircraft, a QantasLink Embraer E190AR (with registration VH-XVO), seemingly trying to catch the pilot’s attention.
Security alarms can be heard to sound in the background as the woman continues to walk around the aircraft close to the cockpit.
In response to the incident, some users of social media platforms TikTok and X (formerly Twitter) have expressed their concerns about airport security. Many have wondered how the woman managed to stay on the tarmac for so long without interference from authorities. One comment even suggests that, had the incident occurred during a cricket match, the woman would have been tackled immediately.
The 43-year old was later taken into custody by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) at 19:30 local time and charged with two counts of damaging property, one count of entering a security zone without permission and one count of possessing a small quantity of cannabis.
An Australian Federal Police spokesperson told the BBC that the woman has been refused bail and is due to appear in court on November 3, 2023.