Systems glitch at Australian airports causes major headache for international flyers

​​​​​​​By Esra Tekin

ISTANBUL (AA) – In a nationwide disruption, travelers at Australian airports on Thursday are facing significant delays at check-in for international flights due to a major tech outage, local media reported.

Passengers found themselves stuck in long lines as their passports awaited processing.
The outage has specifically affected the visa scanning technology used for travelers leaving the country.

An Australian Border Force spokesperson confirmed the IT outage is being experienced by the service provider responsible for managing the Advanced Passenger Processing (APP) systems.

These systems verify with airlines that travelers have the permits and valid documents to exit the country before boarding their flights.

"We do have quite long lines at international check-in at the moment," Melbourne Airport's Andrew Lund told Nine radio station 3AW, a local radio station.

Lund also said other airports in the country have been affected by the glitches.

The Australian Border Force staff will manually process passengers where applicable, according to local media.