A British couple were left stranded and hundreds of pounds out of pocket after massive queues at passport control caused them to miss their flight home from Lisbon.
'Paralysed' Queues Cause Missed Connection
Helena Feltham and her husband arrived at Humberto Delgado Airport in Lisbon on 26 November as check-in opened for their British Airways flight to London Heathrow. After a brief stop for coffee post-security, they discovered the passport control area was, in her words, 'paralysed'.
She reported seeing more than 100 people waiting in a line serviced by just two border police officers. Despite waiting for 50 minutes, the queue barely moved, and the pair missed their scheduled departure.
'The airport staff did nothing to help,' Ms Feltham told The Times. 'BA had no staff in the terminal to assist and the ground handlers could only roll their eyes, say this was a daily occurrence and give us a BA call-centre number.'
Booking Complications Worsen Ordeal
The couple's troubles were compounded because they had booked their original tickets through a third-party agent, DialAFlight. British Airways informed them it could not help with rebooking as a result.
Left with little choice, they had to purchase new last-minute tickets with TAP Air Portugal to get home, leaving them £380 out of pocket.
'We are out of pocket by £380 and were very stressed about the experience,' Ms Feltham said. 'How long is this shambolic situation going to continue?'
A Systemic Problem with No Quick Fix
These disruptions are far from isolated. Passengers have recently complained of waits of up to four or five hours at Lisbon's passport control, particularly for non-EU passport holders.
The airport operator, ANA Aeroportos de Portugal, apologised for the stressful experience but clarified that border control is managed by the police, over which it has no operational authority. A spokesperson stated they cannot staff booths or alter police shift changes, but they 'continue to press government authorities to improve staffing levels'.
The Times Travel Doctor attributed the chaos to a perfect storm of factors:
- Teething problems with the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES).
- Chronic airport over-capacity.
- Insufficient staff numbers.
- Flight scheduling that creates intense peaks.
While British Airways had warned passengers about potential delays, the advice for travellers is clear: arrive at Lisbon Airport exceptionally early to have any chance of navigating the lengthy queues. The situation shows no sign of abating in the near future.
