A computer glitch affecting the automated passport control system has created major delays for arriving travelers at UK airports this Saturday May 27.
On social networks, many travelers have complained of having to wait several hours before being able to pass immigration controls, in the middle of the long weekend.
London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports cited a national issue affecting “ e-gates” of the British border police, which allow automatic passage of checks. ” Our teams are working closely with border police to resolve the issue as quickly as possible Heathrow Airport said on its website, adding that additional staff have been deployed to manage queues and assist passengers.
The United Kingdom has over 270 e-gates in 15 infrastructures. They are available to travelers over the age of 12, whether they are British, EU nationals or several other countries (including Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan or the United States).
Canceled flights
The day before, the airline British Airways (BA) said in a press release that it had canceled around 100 flights between Thursday and Friday at London’s Heathrow airport following a technical problem. The company did not give a total number of canceled flights. But according to the PA agency, which quotes the specialized company Cirium, 175 flights were canceled over two days by BA, which means that more than 20,000 passengers saw their journey disrupted.
Long queues were also reported on Saturday 27 May in the morning to board the cross-Channel ferries at the port of Dover, in the south-east of England, due to a computer problem at passport control in the French border. This has been resolved, the port said on Twitter, estimating midday wait times of 30 to 45 minutes, compared to 90 minutes in the morning.
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(With AFP)