By Farid Farid and Poppy Johnston in Sydney

Drones have been approved to circle above a popular city beach where a woman was mauled by a shark despite its proximity to an airport.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority has given a temporary exemption for aerial surveillance of Coogee Beach after a woman, aged in her 30s, was critically injured by a shark on Saturday.

Sustaining flesh wounds to her leg and arm, the woman, who was swimming between the flags when she was attacked, remains in a critical but a stable condition, St Vincent’s Hospital told AAP on Monday.

Surf Lifesaving NSW public safety manager Brent Manieri confirmed the CASA ban was lifted to allow drones to fly across several beaches for the rest of the week.

“We will be operating … to ensure there’s a level of aerial surveillance that the community can feel safe and assured in when they want to come back down and have a swim,” he told ABC on Monday.

The beach is about eight kilometres from Sydney Airport.

Mr Manieri said negotiations were ongoing with the NSW government to fly drones across all of the state’s coastline to protect the public.

More than 100,000 drone flights tracking sharks have been recorded across NSW since July 2025, he noted.

A great white shark, which is a protected species, is thought to have been responsible, despite the woman swimming between the flags and “doing all right things.”

It follows a cluster of attacks nationwide, including several bull shark bites in Sydney Harbour in January.

The latest incident has reignited calls for culls to protect swimmers, which NSW Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty has not expressly ruled out.

But experts warn there is little evidence shark culls keep ocean-goers safer following the latest shocking encounter at a busy city beach.

Adelaide University environmental science program director Brianna Le Brusque said harmful encounters with the predators were tragic and cull discussions an understandable response.

She said there was no science on how many animals would need to be removed to keep swimmers safe nor evidence it would meaningfully improve community safety.

Surveillance methods to alert swimmers were more effective, though complicated by a flight path keeping drones out of the air around Coogee.

There were other detection options, Dr Le Brusque told AAP, including employing spotters from vantage points.

Federal Labor MP for Kingsford Smith, Matt Thistlewaite, said aviation safety was paramount but backed an exploration of drones flying at low altitudes.

He was not in favour of shark culls.

Shark nets, another method of separating humans from marine predators, are set to be installed at the start of September though the NSW government is seeking expert advice from the Department of Primary Industries.

RMIT University senior research fellow Rebecca Olive said there was more than one type of shark net, with some fully-enclosed and others free-floating.

“Whales, dolphins, turtles, rays and birds all get caught in them, and they stop nothing,” she told AAP.

Shark encounters always caused “great pain” for individuals and family involved, Dr Olive said, as well as communities.

“These are really difficult issues, and the people who are involved are people who love oceans.”

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott joined other politicians coming out strongly in favour of shark culls in the name of community safety.

“It’s so wrong that we don’t cull sharks after attacks,” he said in a video he posted on his social media.

“It’s so wrong we don’t put people before sharks.”

Coogee Surf Life Saving Club is hosting a community gathering for anyone affected by the shark attack on Monday evening.