UK travel disruption drags on, set to hit Easter holiday

Bloomberg

Travel disruption continued to hit UK holidaymakers as officials warned of expected queues at airports later in the week and motorists faced fuel shortages.
Both EasyJet Plc and British Airways had more cancellations, though the airlines said those flights had been called
off in advance. According to FlightAware data, British Airways canceled 7% of flights today and delayed 19%. More than 20% of EasyJet’s flights
are delayed, according to FlightAware, and an airline spokeswoman said 40 flights were cancelled.
“Queues are anticipated as travelers return later this week,” said Lucy Moreton, a spokeswoman for the Immigration Services Union, which represents Border Force staff. Staff are being deployed to Heathrow airport from Scotland and Northern Ireland to help mitigate the queues.
Travellers who have waited years for the return of overseas holidays are now facing last-minute cancellations of their trips and lengthy lines at airports. Airlines, which laid off staff during the pandemic, are scrambling to add enough people, as well as dealing with coronavirus-related absences.
Even local travel is set to be hit, with some fuel stations in the southeast of England running out of supply and being forced to close as climate protests targeted distribution depots.
Londoners also faced disruption from climate activists, with Extinction Rebellion shutting down Lambeth and Vauxhall bridges, as mass protests swept the capital over the weekend. The city’s Metropolitan Police said that it was working with partners to reduce disruption.
Both Heathrow and Gatwick airports said they were expecting significant numbers of travellers over Easter.
Heathrow said it was deploying extra staff in anticipation of passenger numbers not seen since early March 2020.
A Gatwick spokesman said queues may form during peak periods, such as weekends and the Easter Holidays. It advised passengers to arrive at the earliest time their airline allows for check in, typically three hours for long-haul and two-and-a-half for short haul.
Dublin Airport, which saw passengers arriving in anticipation of queues, said it appreciated travellers continuing to adhere to advice to arrive up to three and a half hours before their departure time. Security at Terminal 1 is open 24 hours a day to accommodate the queues, a spokesman said.