Easyjet leaves 100 behind in border check queues

Easyjet Leaves 100 Travelers Stranded at Milan Airport

Over 100 passengers were left waiting at Milan’s Linate airport after an Easyjet flight to Manchester departed without them. The incident occurred on Sunday, with delays attributed to extensive border control checks. Travelers reported waiting for up to three hours, leading to frustration and physical discomfort due to the sweltering conditions.

Passenger Experiences Highlight Disruption

One affected traveler, Kiera, 17, from Oldham, shared her ordeal with the BBC. She and her partner arrived at the airport early, only to face a lengthy queue at the border checkpoint. “We got here at seven-thirty for our flight at eleven, so were super early,” she said. “By the time we reached the front, our flight had already gone, leaving us with a 20-hour wait to secure a replacement journey.”

“We got to Border Control and it was a massive queue of people. I wasn’t feeling great anyway because I think I’d got food poisoning,” Kiera explained. “At about ten-fifty, they brought some water over, but when we finally reached the front, we were told our flight had just left. Only 30 people boarded, while around 100 remained stranded.”

Adam Lomas, 33, and his family faced similar challenges. The accountant from Wakefield was on holiday with his wife and their four-month-old daughter. “We’ve been sitting here for hours,” he said. “A few people tried calling Easyjet, but the chatbots didn’t work, and there were audio problems. They just hung up after five or ten minutes.”

“Despite waiting patiently, we had to move to a nearby hotel. Some passengers drove to Pisa to catch a flight, but we decided to stay put to avoid stressing the baby. The airport and Easyjet kept arguing over who was responsible for the delays,” Adam added.

Easyjet’s Response and System Impact

Easyjet acknowledged the situation, stating that the delays were caused by the new European Entry/Exit System (EESS). The system, introduced in October 2022, has been linked to longer processing times at the border. A spokesperson said the airline had taken steps to mitigate the issue, including holding flights and offering free transfers for missed passengers.

However, the airline emphasized that the problem was “outside of our control.” Kiera was offered £12.25 in compensation, which she described as insufficient. “We won’t be able to buy a sandwich for that,” she said, highlighting the financial strain on her family. The cost of rebooking flights to Gatwick and arranging transport back to Greater Manchester has already reached £520.

UK Government Guidance on EES

The UK government recently updated its advice for travelers heading to the Schengen area, noting that biometric data collection, such as fingerprints and photos, may now be required upon arrival. Officials clarified that prior registration was not necessary, and the EES process itself is free to use.

Despite these assurances, the system has led to significant delays. Easyjet urged border authorities to optimize the EES’s flexibility to reduce wait times. “We continue to ask for better use of available options during the transition period,” the spokesperson said, while expressing regret for the inconvenience caused.

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