Holidaymakers wait FOUR HOURS to get their bags as Manchester and Gatwick airport bosses apologise again for long delays caused by staff shortages
- Gatwick and Manchester airports have apologised for long queues at security
- Travellers using the airports have labelled their experiences ‘horrible’ and ‘grim’
- One said there was a four-hour wait at baggage reclaim at Manchester today
- Another traveller said waking into the airport was like walking into ‘hell on earth’
Bosses have apologised after travellers were left waiting for four hours to collect their bags as long delays continue to impact holidaymakers at British airports.
People flying in and out of Manchester and Gatwick airports took to social media to voice their frustration today after long queues put a dampener on their holiday plans.
One person at Manchester Airport claimed they were left waiting four hours to collect luggage at baggage reclaim, while another described the airport as ‘hell on earth’.
Meanwhile, at Gatwick Airport there were complaints about delays on Tuesday morning, with one traveller taking to Twitter to describe their experience as ‘horrible’ and ‘grim’.
Gatwick Airport said these queues were temporary and dissipated relatively quickly.
Both airports have apologised for the delays, with Manchester Airport blaming a slow recovery from the Covid pandemic and saying it was doing all it can to move people quickly.
Photos taken at Gatwick Airport on Monday, May 23, show travellers stuck in long security queues
Passengers looking for a smooth getaway at some airports have been frustrated in recent months, with complaints about the length of queues at check in and security in airports.
In some situations this has led to people missing their flights, or flights being delayed to allow for travellers caught in the queues to reach the aircraft.
These frustrations continued today, with passengers at Manchester Airport taking to social media to air their complaints.
Adam Thomas tweeted: ‘Four hours waiting for luggage to come through at arrivals at Manchester Airport.’
Mhari Oakes wrote: ‘Hell on earth this morning at Manchester Airport – avoid it like the plague!! Everyone missing flights despite getting there 3 hours before departure. Absolute and complete chaos. No check in staff.’
Marion Wolstenholme-O’Reilly added: ‘Chaos at Manchester Airport this morning. Almost two hours queuing to drop off case and still no end in sight. Really really poor @easyJet – no organisation, no communication. Upset, anxious and frustrated queues of customers.’
At Gatwick Airport customers arriving earlier this morning complained of long delays when trying to pick up baggage and going through security in what seems to be a repeat of scenes from Monday, May 23.
@gylesnamopaleen wrote: ‘Gatwick Airport is a complete shambles today. Allow a lot of extra time for security if you’re unfortunate enough to fly from there… the fast track security lane took about an hour. Yep, an hour.’
@Mollscroll wrote: ‘Queues at Gatwick Airport just to get to the escalator up to departures to queue again. Can’t even see the end point. Gatwick is always a horrible experience. Grim.’
This prompted the Gatwick Airport Twitter account to respond: ‘Hi, we’re really sorry for any delay. We are operating a moving queue system and staff are working hard to process passengers as quickly as possible through Security Search.’
@DA7Guy46 complained about the wait at baggage reclaim, writing: ‘Shambolic service at the north terminal waiting for luggage more than 90 minutes after landing!! No apologies no nothing and still no clue as to when luggage will arrive. Landed at 13.50. Sort it out please.’
Gatwick Airport’s twitter account responded saying: ‘Hi there, I’m sorry your airline and their appointed handling agent are delayed in delivering your baggage. I am sure your airlines is working closely with their handling agent to reunite passengers with their bags.’
A Gatwick Airport spokesperson, said: ‘A queue formed for airport security at the airport this morning.
‘At its worse, the queue time was around 30 minutes as it continued to flow and we worked hard to reduce and eventually remove the queue altogether.
‘Gatwick Airport would like to apologise to any passengers who have been invoiced by queuing at the airport.
‘We expect to be busy throughout the summer and passengers are advised to arrive at the airport as soon as check-in opens for their flight. Typically, this is 3 hours for long-haul and 2-2 ½ for short-haul.’
A spokesman for Manchester Airport said: ‘We apologise to any passengers whose experience at Manchester Airport this morning was not how they would like it to be.
‘As we continue to recover from the pandemic, we continue to advise customers there may be some times when security queues are longer than usual, which is why we advise people to arrive three hours before their flights.
‘On Tuesday morning, while the vast majority of people passed through security in under 30 minutes, waiting times peaked at around one hour in one of our terminals for a brief period of time, and we are sorry for any inconvenience caused.
‘By 7am, security queues in all three terminals had improved significantly, and were as low as 15 minutes in the best case.
‘We are also aware some passengers reported delays when checking in with their airline, and collecting baggage on their return.
‘All parts of the aviation sector are experiencing challenges linked to the rapid recovery from the pandemic and we are working hard with all our partners, including handling agents, airlines and others, to deliver the best possible service we can in the circumstances.’
A spokesperson for Swissport, a baggage handler at Manchester Airport, told Manchester Evening News: ‘We are sorry for the delays passengers have experienced collecting their bags at Manchester Airport today.
‘While the aviation industry is still recovering from the pandemic, we, like other ground handling services, are working hard to address these challenges and have already welcomed nearly 2,000 new colleagues across the UK and Ireland.
‘We understand how frustrating and inconvenient delays are and we continue to work with our partners to implement contingency measures and improve turnaround times.’
The delays come after industry chiefs have warned British holidaymakers hoping to fly abroad at any time this year to brace for 12 months of travel hell due to unprecedented airline staff shortages caused by Covid self-isolation and mass layoffs during the pandemic.
Experts said that airlines ‘are simply unable to cope with that demand due to a lack of resources’ and warned that the ‘nightmare’ disruption – of the sort seen over Easter, where hundreds of flights were cancelled by airlines including British Airways and easyJet – could last all year.
Queues at Gatwick Airport pictured yesterday. The airport apologised for the delays and said it was ‘working hard’ to ‘reduce and remove’ them as quickly as possible
BA has axed hundreds of flights up on some routes to the US and the Far East until September, affecting thousands of travellers after it had already cancelled more than 1,000 flights in little more than three weeks.
Routes affected have included from London to Berlin, Dublin, Geneva, Paris, Stockholm, Athens and Prague. The flagship carrier axed another 200-plus flights over yesterday and on Wednesday, affecting an estimated 20,000 passengers.
There are fears that other carriers could also be hit with issues after easyJet cancelled hundreds of flights over Easter.
Kully Sandhu, managing director of Aviation Recruitment Network, told the Express: ‘In my opinion, it could be up to 12 months before we see staffing at airports back to pre-pandemic levels. Recruitment for people at airports takes longer than roles elsewhere because of necessary, additional security and background checks.
‘Routine recruitment campaigns ground to halt during the pandemic and have been slow to start again as international travel has had a number of restrictions on it until recently. That means the recruitment pipeline was cut off and needs to be re-established.
‘Aviation has lost its appeal, not only for returners but also for people who have never worked in an airport environment before.’
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