European airport chaos as Brits are caught up in hours-long queues spilling into carparks as summer getaway is hit by EU border check changes

Huge queues have formed at airports across Europe, and long snaking queues have formed at the front entrances of some travel centres.

The continent recently introduced new border rules and one airport boss said it had almost tripled the time it took Britons to go through passport control.

Images taken from Corfu Airport and shared on social media show a long queue of disgruntled flyers waiting on the pavement outside the airport.

A woman was seen fanning herself to cool off against the hot weather.

The clip then cuts to inside the airport, before passport control, where the queue has almost come to a standstill.

The images were shared by a social media user who wrote: ‘Still waiting in the queue outside Corfu Airport, just over an hour until the flight. [sic] ‘My plane is leaving.’

In the video shot yesterday morning at Portugal’s Faro Airport, it is seen that a large queue has formed in front of the passport control and very few people in the queue seem happy.

The clip was shared with the following caption: ‘If you’re traveling today, be prepared.’

In the video shot yesterday morning at Portugal’s Faro Airport, a large queue was seen forming in front of passport control.

While large queues were seen outside the travel center at Montenegro’s Tivat Airport, many people were seen inside waiting to deliver their luggage.

The video was titled: ‘Tivat Airport is not for the weak…’

There were scenes of chaos at Greece’s Kos Airport as countless people tried to board their planes.

A woman shared her experience on TikTok and emphasized that there was a huge queue in duty-free stores.

Pointing to his watch, which read 13.04, he wrote: ‘We were already queuing from 12.30.’

He then showed a clip of the busier queues and moved on to a second shot of his watch, this time showing 1.55pm, adding: ‘We got through just after 2pm.’

Earlier this week, aviation chief Ivan Bassato at Rome’s Fiumicino airport told the BBC that the EU’s new Entry Exit System (EES) had increased the average time it took for Britons to pass through airport security from seven minutes to 20 minutes.

‘We are not at the point where the process is of the same quality,’ he said. [as] Before EES.”

Large queues were seen outside the travel center at Montenegro’s Tivat Airport

Scenes of chaos broke out at Greece’s Kos Airport as countless people tried to board their planes

He added that the airport found it impractical for large numbers of passengers to use self-service kiosks, despite the cost of £10.2 million.

Portugal’s Faro Airport added that the technology running EES was suffering from bugs, but insisted queues would close quickly.

Inspector Pedro Oliveira, in charge of border control at Faro airport, said: ‘Sometimes a 10-minute queue… takes more than 30 minutes.’

The chaos at airports across Europe on Wednesday comes just days after travelers were advised to arrive four hours before departure.

Under the new EES, non-EU travelers (which now includes Brits) must provide fingertips and a facial image at borders.

Its introduction in April caused problems across the continent and even caused some holidaymakers to miss their flights.

Anton Radchenko, aviation expert and founder of AirAdvisor, recommended this week:

‘Arriving four hours early isn’t a sensible general rule for every flight, but at some European airports this summer it’s no longer a ridiculous measure.

‘The biggest risk is on the flight home, where British passengers must pass through new exit controls at European airports before reaching their gates.

‘At airports where significant queues have already been reported, or where several flights to the UK depart close together, it may be prudent to allow three to four hours.’

But Paul Charles, co-founder of PC Agency, described the idea of ​​passengers checking in four hours before their flights as ‘madness’.

He told the Daily Mail: ‘It’s madness to suggest four-hour check-ins. First of all, many airlines do not open their check-in desks this early, especially for early morning flights. So passengers would be stuck at the airport for no reason.

It comes after images taken at Faro Airport in Portugal earlier this week showed disgruntled passengers piling into huge lines at border control.

Meanwhile, a British passenger posted footage of the chaos at Rome Airport on Monday.

‘Secondly, if every long-distance traveler arrived four hours early, airports wouldn’t have room to put so many passengers. They would have to queue outside the terminals, which was not ideal in bad or hot weather.

‘It would be much better to put resources into a more efficient process so that two-hour check-in remains the norm.’

Earlier this year, British holidaymakers were told to arrive at European airports three hours before their flight home, amid queuing chaos caused by new EU border controls.

Wizz Air boss Yvonne Moynihan has told Brits they should allow more time than usual before their flights, allowing a few hours for the connection, bringing water with them and charging their phones.

Ms Moynihan said the airline had advised British passengers to allow an extra hour on top of the previously recommended two-hour early arrival time.

He told the BBC that while it offered ‘seamless’ travel to many places, there were long delays at popular holiday destinations.

‘There may be queues when you land at the arrival airport, so you should bring a portable charger or water with you,’ he said.

Since the introduction of the EU’s new EES, the time it takes for Britons to go through passport control at some European airports has tripled; This situation came to light recently, leading to new early arrival guidance.

It comes after airline passengers vomited and fainted earlier this year after being stranded in Milan amid border control chaos.

Around 100 EasyJet customers were abandoned at Italy’s Milan Linate Airport for a flight to Manchester on 12 April; Three-hour queues plagued travelers when new EU border rules came into force.

The airline said the situation was ‘out of our control’ and that issues with the EU’s new EES were causing delays, adding that the delays were ‘unacceptable’.

The Daily Mail understands that EasyJet delayed the Milan Linate flight by 52 minutes to give customers extra time, but the flight was forced to take off half-empty as crews approached the end of their safety-regulated working hours.

This isn’t the only time passengers have missed flights due to chaotic airport queues.

In another incident, British airline passengers were recently left stranded in Milan after their flight took off without them due to EES delays.

A Ryanair flight from Milan Bergamo to Manchester took off without some passengers on April 16.

Adam Hassanjee, 18, from Bolton, one of those stranded at the airport, told BBC News: ‘We had been waiting for an hour and a half and not moving.

‘Then we see the plane taking off and we are told we have to go and book our own return ticket.’

Reports suggest around 30 people were stranded but Ryanair has not confirmed exact figures.