Qantas flight QF28 from Chile forced to divert to Newcastle after wild storm in Sydney

Passengers were forced to spend the night on the tarmac after their flight was diverted as a massive storm battered Sydney. 

The Qantas Dreamliner travelled 14 hours from Santiago, in Chile, and was scheduled to land in Sydney on Saturday evening as a damaging thunderstorm rolled in.

Several flights were unable to land because of the weather with winds reaching up to 92km/h, power lines being torn down and thousands of homes left without power.

Flight QF28 was the only international aircraft to be diverted with the plane sent to Newcastle Airport even though it was not equipped for a Boeing 787.  

When they could finally disembark they has to wait inside the airport terminal until they could get another flight to Sydney (pictured)

The lack of infrastructure meant the plane could not refuel and fly out when the weather cleared, leaving passengers trapped on the runway for seven hours. 

The passengers were then told they could disembark but had to wait inside the airport terminal because there was no available accommodation in Newcastle. 

One passenger said the flight was the bumpiest they had ever experienced and a few fellow travellers had even thrown up. 

‘A lot of us have been on flights that were bumpy, but that was on another level,’ John Myers told The Sydney Morning Herald. 

‘Some people were holding hands and a few people were gripping on tight, there were a few gasps, but no screams.’

A few frustrated flyers took to social media to vent their anger. 

‘QF28 Santiago to Sydney diverted to Newcastle due to storm. Full flight on a Dreamliner,’  one person said.  

‘Sat on tarmac for six hours… now offloaded and sitting in terminal in Newcastle until our departure at 8am… I t’s 2.23am and no Qantas official in sight at terminal.’ 

Mr Myers said when the new round of flight staff arrived in the early morning they brought around water and McDonald’s burgers for the weary passengers. 

Some passengers took to social media to vent their frustration 

A massive storm which hit Sydney about 6pm caused the Qantas flight to be diverted to an unprepared airport

A trampoline picked up and blown onto the footpath in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire (pictured)

‘By and large people kept their cool, and it was good to see that the people at the pointy end weren’t treated any differently to people in cattle class.’

Eventually the plane was refueled and given the all-clear to depart Newcastle on Sunday morning, arriving in Sydney at about 10am.

A Qantas spokeswoman said several airlines had been impacted by the wild storm.

‘This included our flight from Santiago to Sydney which diverted to Newcastle. Qantas customer support team members travelled from Sydney to Newcastle to assist customers in the terminal through the night,’ she said.

‘We understand that this would have been a frustrating experience for our customers and an uncomfortable night and we thank them for their patience and understanding of the impact the storms had on flights into Sydney.’