NEWS
Inbound passengers can expect long delays
Airlines vow to run full schedules during Border Force staff strikes
Ian Taylor
Inbound travellers should expect long queues on arrival at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and other airports over Christmas and New Year, but outbound passengers should be largely unaffected by strikes by Border Force staff. Airlines vowed to
maintain their Christmas and New Year schedules despite the government making clear there will be no relaxation of border control during the strikes. Instead, ministers confirmed: “Military personnel, civil servants and volunteers from across government are being trained to support Border Force.” A leading airline source hit
cancellations. Airlines can’t cancel inbound flights anyway because of the outbound demand. “Any capacity mitigations will be
STORY TOP
around the number of passengers on aircraft. There could be a range of measures at peak times, such as putting back the departure times of inbound flights or [temporary] passenger caps. But the ambition is to operate the full schedule.” The source explained:
“Planning between Border Force, airports and carriers is on a
local basis. It is complex, but the aim is to carry as many people as possible who are currently booked. “There will be long queues. It’s
out at “media forecasts of mass cancellations” and insisted: “Airlines and airports intend to operate a full schedule. We don’t expect mass
travelweekly.co.uk
not going to be a good customer experience, and anyone who can use an e-gate should.” British Airways head of integrated
operations control Richard Treeves confirmed: “We don’t expect to see
an impact on departing passengers. We’re keeping our schedule under review, but we plan to operate our published schedule. It’s likely there will be increased queues.” Aviation minister Baroness Vere
warned the Abta Travel Matters conference last week: “There will be some very long queues and we have to communicate that to customers.” Border Force officers, employed
by the Home Office, want a 10% pay rise and plan to strike on December 23-26 and 28-31, although action on December 26 and 31 is due to end at 7am. The action at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow and Cardiff airports and port of Newhaven will hit passport control and customs. Agents reported customers appear
unfazed by the latest disruption. Paul Hardwick, head of commercial at Fred Olsen Travel said: “We’ve not had many customers ask about
the strikes. It would put people off booking last minute, but we rarely see last-minute bookings for Christmas.” Polka Dot Travel director Mark
Johnson agreed: “The strike action is not really having an impact. Very few customers mention it.” Jacqueline Dobson, president of
Barrhead Travel, added: “Customers who are travelling accept there may be some disruption. We’ve been making sure clients know we’re here to support them in case of any challenges.” Heathrow said in a statement:
“Departing passengers should expect to travel as normal. Arriving passengers with UK, EU, US, Canadian and some other passports will be able to use e-gates.” However, children under 12 can’t
use e-gates and those aged 12 to 17 must be accompanied by an adult. A Heathrow spokesperson added:
“Passengers are advised to check their flight status before travelling.”
15 DECEMBER 2022 5
PICTURE: Shutterstock/1000 Words
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64
