Travel chaos continues at UK airports this week, with hundreds of flights cancelled
Brits hoping to go on holiday are now being urged not to put any hold luggage, in the latest bid to tackle travel chaos in the UK.
Passengers arriving at airports across the country have faced hours of queueing, baggage delays and missing luggage at the start of their holiday. And many who have endured this haven’t even made it on the plane – with hundreds of flights cancelled by TUI, easyJet and British Airways this half term.
Thousands more Brits will be hoping to get away today and make the most of the four day bank holiday weekend. But holidaymakers have been hit with some warnings before they travel.
Just landed at @Gatwick_Airport and some people in the #baggage reclaim say they have been waiting for bags for more than two hours. pic.twitter.com/X6NOSN5tkM
— Tony Brown (@tonyprod77) May 31, 2022
Passengers should consider only taking hand luggage to be brought onto the plane as hand luggage rather than anything that needs to be checked into the hold, industry experts have warned. This is to reduce delays and the chance of luggage going missing.
Of course, if only bringing hand luggage, passengers will be limited on what toiletries they can bring, and may have to purchase them at the airport instead. Hand luggage sizes are also restricted, meaning holidaymakers might not be able to take all the items they wanted.
Andy Prendergast, national secretary of the GMB union, told Sky News: “If people can check in online and do not take [large] bags, that limits the disruption. It’s not a magic bullet but it does reduce the chance of there being problems.”
Paul Charles, chief executive of the PC Agency, also said that, where possible, “passengers should consider packing lightly and travelling with a small bag they can take on board the aircraft”.
Absolute nightmare at Dublin Airport today. Waited 2.5hrs to get our bags at baggage reclaim. At best it's total management ineptitude and at worst deliberate sabotage of airport resources and staff. #swissport #DublinAirport #DAA #TUI#rtenews #liveline pic.twitter.com/lQBuKCBQqf
— BadDogPhotography (@PaorPol) May 29, 2022
On Tuesday, TUI announced that hundreds more flights due to take off from Manchester Airport will be cancelled throughout June. The airport has seen some of the worst chaos in the country, coming second only after Gatwick for the most cancellations, iNews reports.
Flights have also been grounded at Luton and Belfast, with huge queues forming at Dublin Airport.
It was only last weekend that police officers were drafted in to break the bad news to TUI customers in Manchester that their holiday had been cancelled.
So after spending 8 hours at @manairport yesterday, hours queuing at T2 bag drop, then security, to then find our flight delayed (with no information), @TUIUK cancelled our entire holiday to Kos (booked in 2020) by TEXT message (!) as we sat waiting at the departure gate 1/3 pic.twitter.com/poyHBLbkp8
— Jayesh Patel ☔️ (@smurfyhelp_jay) May 29, 2022
A Manchester Airport spokesman said TUI had experienced “significant challenges” with its check-in and baggage operations.
“It is clear that they are experiencing temporary staff shortages, in common with other aviation and travel companies,” the spokesman said.
The airport said it will continue to work with TUI and other partners, but advised passengers to arrive three hours before their flight and to be “as prepared as they can be” for their journey through the airport.
As well as TUI, British Airways is cutting more than 100 flights every day as part of its pre-planned reduction in services, while EasyJet cancelled over 200 flights last week as a result of IT problems. Barcelona, Madrid, Prague and Valencia were amongst a number of destinations to which EasyJet cancelled services.
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