Airport delays: Latest from Heathrow and Gatwick as e-passport gates cause travel chaos Bank Holiday Saturday

Failures with the passport e-gate system at UK airports have brought on lengthy delays for these arriving within the nation as the financial institution vacation getaway will get beneath approach.

Travellers have described on social media queues of a number of hours at a variety of airports together with Heathrow and Gatwick as arrivals must have their passports checked by hand relatively than the automated machines.

The issues got here as thousands and thousands are anticipated to take to the roads and public transport this weekend.

One traveller arriving at Heathrow posted on Twitter: “Just landed to scenes of utter chaos. 2 hour queues just to get to the real queue. Gates broken.”

Another passenger at Gatwick described the state of affairs as an “utter joke”.

Flyers confronted travel chaos on Saturday after failures with the passport e-gate system at UK airports brought on prolonged delays as the financial institution vacation getaway kicks off.

Disgruntled travellers took to social media to bemoan a number of hours ready at airports, together with Heathrow and Gatwick, as arrivals must have their passports checked by hand relatively than the automated machines.

The issues got here as thousands and thousands are anticipated to take to the roads and public transport this weekend, with some prolonged queues already impacting travellers on the Port of Dover.

One traveller arriving at Heathrow posted on Twitter: “Just landed to scenes of utter chaos. 2 hour queues just to get to the real queue. Gates broken.”

Another passenger at Gatwick described the state of affairs as an “utter joke”.

Saturday was the UK’s hottest day of the yr, the Met Office has confirmed.

Temperatures reached as excessive as 24.3C in Bramham, West Yorkshire, the forecaster stated.

The heat financial institution vacation is predicted to proceed into Sunday, though it isn’t predicted to be fairly as heat.

Temperatures are anticipated to succeed in as much as 23C in Plymouth.

Heading north it will likely be more and more cooler, with bigger spells of cloud than the day earlier than.

The RAC estimated that drivers throughout the UK will embark on 19.2 million leisure automobile journeys between Friday and Monday making it the busiest late May financial institution vacation since 2019.

Transport information firm Inrix warned that journeys on some stretches of the M25 will take as much as thrice longer than regular.

They embrace clockwise from Junction 23 for Hatfield to Junction 28 for Chelmsford, and anticlockwise in direction of the Dartford Crossing.

Long delays are additionally anticipated on the M5 in Somerset and the M6 in Cheshire and Greater Manchester.

A Gatwick Airport spokesperson stated the issue began on Friday night however queues had eased on Saturday morning.

He stated: “Some passengers might expertise delays at immigration as a consequence of a nationwide challenge with UK Border Force e-gates.

“Our workers are working with UK Border Force – who function passport management together with the e-gates – to supply help to passengers the place needed.”

Heathrow Airport posted on Twitter: “We are conscious of a nationwide challenge impacting the eGates, that are operated by Border Force.

“This challenge is impacting a variety of ports of entry and will not be Heathrow particular.

“Our groups are working intently with Border Force to assist resolve the issue as rapidly as attainable and now we have further colleagues available to handle queues and present passenger welfare. We apologise for any affect that is having to passenger journeys.”

The travel chaos at airports throughout the UK, together with Gatwick, comes forward of strike motion affecting the Gatwick Express over the upcoming week.

There will likely be no Gatwick Express trains on 31 May and 3 June, whereas an amended timetable will likely be in place on 1 June and a restricted service on 2 June.