RYANAIR has issued a warning to customers after hundreds of passengers have missed flights in recent weeks.
The low-cost airline reported disruptions due to long queues at certain locations.
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The travel chaos results in over 270 people missing their flights in the past two weeks.
Ryanair issued a warning on Monday, June 9, in response to bottleneck queues at a handful of airports.
The airline said the long lines are resulting in unnecessary wait times, reaching up to two-and-a-half hours.
These disruptions have affected passengers across Faro, Lisbon, and Porto airports.
Ryanair called on Portugal’s new government to urgently tackle the ongoing staff shortages at these locations.
The massive delays are disrupting hundreds of passengers each day, including many who are travelling with young children.
“In just the past two weeks, over 270 passengers missed their flights at these airports due to excessive delays caused by understaffed border controls,” Ryanair said in a statement.
The airline spoke more about the disruptions which first began to affect its customers on May 26.
Ryanair went on to describe the situation as “completely unacceptable”.
“The new government should take urgent measures to ensure that border control at Portuguese airport is duly equipped with resources,” the statement continued.
These issues are said to be a result of a systemic staffing issue.
Airport operator ANA is being accused of not prepping its staff and border posts for the influx of summer travel.
The airline added that measures should be taken “especially during the morning rush hour, in order to avoid unnecessary delays and more people unfairly missing their flights”.
Neal McMahon, Director Of Operations at Ryanair, referred to the situation as “unsustainable”.
He added that it will only worsen as air traffic increases during the peak summer season.
Advice for flying with Ryanair
- All Ryanair passengers can bring a small personal bag on board but this must fit under the seat in front of you, but it must be no bigger than 40cm x 20cm x 25cm
- Any over-sized cabin bags will be refused at the boarding gate and put in the hold for a fee
- Ryanair also charges passengers up to £55 check-in at the airport
- Anyone who loses their card at the airport will have to pay a £20 reissue fee
- Book to sit in the front five rows if you want to head off the plane first
- Extra legroom seats can be found in rows 1 A, B, C or 2 D, E, F as well as row 16 and 17 near the emergency exit
- The worst seat on Ryanair’s Boeing 737-800 aircraft is also 11A because of its lack of window.
Last week, Portugal’s Minister of Infrastructure, Miguel Pinto Luz, tried to assuage worries.
He predicted that the issues at border control should be “resolved within two weeks”.
Portugal’s PSP police force confirmed it will deploy 500 new officers to boost border control and airport security at Lisbon, Porto, Madeira ,and the Azores in July.
Meanwhile, an early reinforcement was already carried out at Faro Airport where the queues have been particularly serious.
Airlines are being faced with a variety of logistical issues over the airports’ staffing shortages, including rebooking, customer complaints, and compensation claims.
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