Qantas flight delayed by on board protest over asylum seeker's deportation

A Qantas Melbourne to Darwin flight has been delayed by an on board protest.

QF838 was delayed by approximately 25 minutes after several passengers refused to sit down, reportedly in protest over the recent deportation of a Tamil asylum seeker.

Police were called to Melbourne airport about 10am after the plane's flight crew were unable to make the group sit down.

A Qantas spokeswoman said the issue had been "resolved" and the flight had since taken off.

It is believed to have been carried out in conjunction with a protest at Prime Minister Tony Abbott's Sydney electorate office in Manly.

The two protests follow an incident last night which saw several protesters interrupt play at the Australian Open.

A similar sign was unfurled and two men ran onto the court during the Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic match.