Australians reunite as border reopens after 20-month ban

Sydney’s international airport has come alive with tears, embraces and laughter as Australia’s border opened for the first time in 20 months

CANBERRA, Australia -- Sydney’s international airport came alive with tears, embraces and laughter on Monday as Australia’s border opened for the first time in 20 months, with some arriving travelers tearing away mandatory masks to see faces of loved ones they’ve been separated from for so long.

“Just being able to come home without having to go to quarantine is huge,” arriving passenger Carly Boyd told reporters at Sydney’s Kingsford-Smith Airport, where Peter Allen's unofficial national anthem “I Still Call Australia Home” was playing.

“There’s a lot of people on that flight who have loved ones who are about to die or have people who died this week so. For them to be able to get off the plane and go see them straight away is pretty amazing,” Boyd added.

Australia is betting that vaccination rates are now high enough to mitigate the danger of allowing international visitors again after maintaining some of the lengthiest and strictest border controls anywhere during the coronavirus pandemic.