TUI issues statement after passengers stuck in long queues at Birmingham Airport
Holiday company TUI has issued a statement after passengers were pictured in huge queues outside Birmingham Airport in the early hours of the morning.
People could be seen lining up for the TUI check-in desk, but the number of people queueing snaked outside the departures building and almost towards the car park.
Birmingham Airport and airports across the country have witnessed chaotic scenes in recent weeks as they struggle to deal with the demand for travel following the pandemic.
Due to the pandemic, airlines, holiday companies and airports made workers redundant, and have yet to return to pre-pandemic staffing numbers despite the demand for travel rapidly increasing. Recruitment and staff shortages have been highlighted as one of the main reasons for the chaotic scenes.
Delayed and cancelled flights, and passengers being sent home without their luggage, have led to frustrated passengers taking to social media to complain about their experiences when departing from and arriving into Birmingham.
One person said on Twitter: "Huge queues outside @bhx_official at 3.30am - & huge queues to get through security but staff passed us through express lane to avoid delays for our 6am flight @TUIUK - however it now looks like the flight is delayed. Never known an airport to be so busy outside school hols."
A spokesperson for TUI said in a statement: "We can confirm that due to staff shortages at Birmingham Airport today, unfortunately some customers are experiencing longer-than-usual queue times at check-in.
"Please be assured that our teams are working as quickly as they can and we’d like to thank our customers for their patience."
Birmingham Airport thanked passengers who were compliant with security measures this morning and say their recruitment in on schedule.
A spokesperson said: "Almost half of the 17,600 customers booked to depart BHX today (Thu June 16) were airborne before 0900 after going through our pre-flight security screening.
“A big ‘thank you’ to customers who present compliant baggage at our x-ray scanners - with all liquids, gels, pastes and electrical items removed. That helps keep everyone moving - and it helps our security officers keep everyone safe.
“Our recruitment is on schedule as we recover from the Covid pandemic, which forced us to make 43% of our workforce redundant. We have now hired the additional security officers we need. Once trained and vetted, they are being deployed.”
