EU airports face worse queues as September rule change looms

Your holiday starts with a queue

Borders across the bloc have suffered lengthy delays since April, when the Entry/Exit System (EES) was fully rolled out.

The scheme requires all UK travellers to register a photograph and fingerprints on their first entry to a Schengen country, a process that has left some passengers waiting hours and others missing flights, including those bound for holiday hotspots in Spain and France.

Until now, member states have been allowed to pause EES checks in “exceptional circumstances”, including when queues become too long, but the EU border agency Frontex has confirmed that flexibility will not be renewed from September, despite industry calls to extend it.

“When lines form during the busy summer months, the system is shut off to ensure smooth transit at our hubs in Paris and Amsterdam.”

— Air France-KLM, speaking to Politico

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary was blunter still, telling The Travel Expert podcast: “We will not wait for anybody.”

With hubs such as Brussels still reporting technical problems, and machines needing restarts when overwhelmed, passengers are being urged to leave plenty of time at the airport once the allowance ends, the Mirror reported.