Major travel disruption is hitting European airports as the European Union's strict new biometric border rules clash with the start of a record Christmas getaway for thousands of British holidaymakers.
Severe Bottlenecks and Extended Queues
According to the Airports Council International (ACI) in Brussels, processing times for passengers have escalated by a staggering 70 per cent due to the new checks. This has led to delays of up to three hours at airports across the EU bloc. The disruption is being driven by the rollout of the EU's new Entry and Exit System (EES), which came into force in October.
The system requires non-EU passport holders, including Britons, to submit fingerprints and have their photograph taken upon first entry into the Schengen area. This biometric data is then verified on departure and during every subsequent visit.
Olivier Jankovec, Director General of ACI, warned that the situation is "severely impacting the passenger experience", with airports in France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain being particularly affected. Remarkably, these severe bottlenecks are occurring even though only ten per cent of passengers are currently subject to the checks in this initial phase.
Warnings of 'Systemic Disruption' and Safety Hazards
The ACI has issued a stark warning that the problems could escalate dramatically. From January 9, the proportion of passengers undergoing the digital registration will jump sharply to 35 per cent, reaching 100 per cent by April. Mr Jankovec cautioned that this increase will "inevitably result in much more severe congestion and systemic disruption" and could even create serious safety hazards within airport terminals.
In a letter to the European Commission, the ACI called for an urgent review of the system and the introduction of "additional flexibility" in its rollout if the issues cannot be resolved by the New Year. Other industry sources have expressed serious concerns of bedlam next summer when the system is fully implemented and passenger numbers peak.
Chaos at Key Hubs as Ski Season Begins
The timing of the rollout has exacerbated problems, coinciding with both the Christmas rush and the start of the peak ski season. Heavy early snowfalls in France and other Alpine resorts have prompted a surge in travellers heading to the mountains.
At Geneva Airport—a major gateway to continental ski resorts—passengers have faced extensive delays. Reports indicate some travellers have endured waits of up to four hours. Although Switzerland is not an EU member, it is part of the border-free Schengen area, meaning the EES rules apply there, as well as in Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.
Geneva Airport has advised passengers to arrive early, stating that "longer waiting times are to be expected upon arrival and departure." It has been reported that the airport has only managed queues by repeatedly turning off the EES system. A travel company executive told The Times: "Geneva has not been functioning and the peak ski season hadn't even started. Four-hour delays are completely unacceptable."
The situation has raised a nightmare scenario for airlines: if terminals reach capacity, they could be forced to hold passengers on parked aircraft to avoid overcrowding in immigration halls.
Meanwhile, the UK's Civil Aviation Authority reported that a record three million people are set to fly from UK airports ahead of Christmas, with one day alone seeing around 460,000 departures, many bound for the affected European destinations.
