Fire at ATC control centre causes MEL delays

A minor fire in the air traffic control centre caused brief delays at Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport on Monday morning.

Airservices Australia said the small fire in a computer room at its Melbourne Conrol Centre forced a partial evacuation of ATC staff. The air traffic control tower was not affected and airborne aircraft were controlled and managed normally for landing during the incident, according to a statement.

Aircraft in the southern flight information region were temporarily held on the ground until the control centre resumed operations at about 7:15 am, Airservices said. Minor delays were expected through the morning as operations returned to normal.