Huge brawl at Birmingham airport amid fury over ‘missed flights’ as others ‘don’t face queues’

A huge debate has broken out over delays at Birmingham Airport. It happens that many passengers experienced long delays yesterday (May 17) as queues built up outside departures – but others said they experienced “no queues” and that it was “moving very quickly ” when they arrived.

There have been delays this month as work is done to create a new security hall. Officials say it will be “more streamlined” – but there are reports it has caused travelers to miss flights.

Some considered the situation a “joke”. But many others responded to say there were no problems at all in a huge contrast of opinion.

READ MORE: Beautiful waterfall with a scenic lunch just 90 minutes from Coventry

READ MORE: Dog owners rave about affordable, training-friendly treats that are ‘big hits with fussy pets’

The delays were also caused by the airport’s main escalators not being used, meaning people are forced to use the lifts. Birmingham Airport said that due to “ongoing construction” passengers would find themselves queuing in “unfamiliar areas”.

And bosses say the airport makes “operational decisions on a daily basis” to ensure the flow of customers through security. Dozens of travelers took to CoventryLive’s Facebook page to share their experiences of catching flights at Birmingham Airport.

One called the airport “an absolute joke”. But in stark disagreement, others said it was the “fastest time ever” and that there were “no problems”.

Linda Atkinson, who traveled to Dublin on Monday May 9, said: “I arrived at the airport at 6.30am. We went up the escalator and we couldn’t believe the queues – it was disgusting.

“There were 14 security zones and only one was open. What a way to run an airport.

“I would have thought there would be staff walking up and down the queues to see how bad it was. Hopefully next time we go it’s better organised.”

Pete Greenway said: “I was there on Tuesday for an hour queuing for the lifts to take you to the security scanning area. Another 30 minutes after you exit the elevators. It’s a joke.”

Claire Gamble said: “It’s been a joke for the last 18 months. We traveled twice from there and had to run for our flight despite getting there 2.5 hours early.”

Karen Leech, who flew on May 1, added: “It was ridiculous. I queued for what seemed like hours and the express lane was no faster.”

However, not everyone had problems during the trip. Hannah Brittan said: “He flew in last Thursday. No queues.

“I got through security in 5 minutes. I landed back on Wednesday and with no queues at border control, the suitcase was out in 10 minutes. It was an excellent experience overall.”

Steven Worwood said: “I went out yesterday. They had the new scanners working in a different area than security normally is. Anyway, I got the fast track to be safe and got through pretty quickly.”

Debra Hewitt said: “I went through the airport last week. From the drop off at the station to the departure lounge took 45 minutes. I came home late last night.

“Straight through passport control, the cases there immediately and in a taxi. Absolutely no problem either way.”

Wayne Wooton added: “I went through last Friday at 3.40am for a 6am flight. We disembarked from the air-rail link and joined the security queue.

“It took about 20 minutes and that’s because my bag had to be checked. No problem”.

Speaking on Friday after passengers were seen queuing outside, a spokesman for Birmingham Airport said: “Due to our ongoing construction work to build our new security search area, customers will find themselves queuing in unknown areas.

“With the sunny morning we experienced today, we made the decision to queue our customers outside to reduce congestion around the construction works. While this may seem unusual to our customers, and for that we apologize, we make operational decisions daily to ensure flow. of customers through security.”

Having trouble traveling from Birmingham Airport? Let us know in the comments below.

Get daily headlines and breaking news delivered to you by email – it’s FREE