The Hume family from Leeds were left stranded at Milan Linate airport on Sunday after easyJet flight 5420 to Manchester departed without them, along with 121 other passengers. Despite arriving nearly three hours early, the family of three was caught up in chaotic enforcement of the EU's new entry-exit system (EES), which caused severe delays at passport control.
Max Hume, 56, his wife Lynsey, 46, and their 13-year-old son Archie had checked in their luggage and reached passport control at 9.15am. However, staff refused to process them because the gate for their flight had not yet been assigned. Meanwhile, passengers on other non-Schengen flights—including a British Airways flight to Heathrow and an easyJet flight to Gatwick—were allowed through. Some passengers on the Manchester flight reportedly lied about their destination to bypass the bottleneck.
When passport control finally opened, only two officers were operating a single biometric machine, despite 16 automatic machines being available. The officers demanded fingerprints and facial scans from every traveller, even though these had been collected on arrival in Italy a week earlier. The slow processing meant the Humes and over 100 others missed their flight.
EasyJet initially told the family they would have to pay £330 to be rebooked on a flight five days later. After being recorded as 'no-shows', they were offered a 'rescue transfer' at £110 per person. Instead, the Humes spent over £1,600 on a connecting flight via Luxembourg, arriving home 24 hours late. Mr Hume described feeling 'gutted, upset, let down, absolutely shattered and poorer – much poorer'.
EasyJet apologised for any inconvenience and said stranded passengers would be offered free transfers to alternative flights. However, the Humes received only a £19.91 refund for the tax element of their original tickets. The family now faces financial strain, with one of Mr Hume's credit cards maxed out.
