British travellers to EU and Schengen areas are being told to ensure they leave enough time for border checks after 89 Ryanair passengers missed their return flight to Bristol last week when passport control delays at César Manrique–Lanzarote Airport prevented them from reaching the gate in time.
Ryanair said the delays were due to staff shortages at Border Control, while Advantage Travel Partnerships and ABTA warned queues would get longer during busy times such as the upcoming Easter holidays.
Ryanair said: “Due to passport control delays at Lanzarote Airport (25 Feb), a number of passengers missed this flight from Lanzarote to Bristol.
“Should these passengers have presented at the boarding gate desk before it closed, they would have boarded this flight alongside the 90 passengers who did present at the gate on time.”
Advantage CEO Julia Lo Bue-Said told Travel Gossip: “We have long maintained that the introduction of EES across the Schengen area will result in queues on arrival into destinations, which poses a significant and growing challenge for some airports at this time. We therefore continue to strongly urge all travellers to allow ample time when planning their journeys.
“Waiting times are also expected to worsen considerably during peak travel periods, and with Easter approaching, we anticipate further substantial pressure on these checkpoints.
“Our advice is straightforward: travellers should plan accordingly and prepare for the worst in terms of clearing passport control points.”
ABTA Director of Public Affairs Luke Petherbridge said: “This is why we’re advising travellers to give themselves plenty of time to go through these checks, recognising that EES could mean it takes longer.
“Travellers should follow their transport provider’s advice on when to arrive at airports/ports etc. If flying, the usual rule is to arrive at the airport for a flight from Europe at least two hours before, so we’d encourage people to apply that as a minimum, but to also check with their airline and airport.
“We’re advising passengers to go to passport control as soon as possible.”
The Spanish Tourist Office in the UK said: “With the implementation of the new European Entry/Exit System (EES), based on the mandatory biometric registration of non-EU travellers at all airports within the European Union, occasional queues are currently occurring at passport control in national airports, as well as across all countries of the European Economic Area.
“This new protocol involves additional border checks introduced as a consequence of Brexit.
“On the specific day in question, this was the only flight that experienced issues in Lanzarote and this is the first time such a situation has occurred as the State Security Forces plan in advance the reinforcement of National Police officers required at the border control during peak demand periods, such as Easter, Christmas, and other high-traffic seasons.”
Last month, ABTA wrote to the European Commission calling for more consistent use of contingency measures at EU and Schengen borders.
