Easter travel crush threatens to overwhelm understaffed airports

Europeans seeking a dose of spring sunshine over the Easter vacation period that starts this weekend should be prepared for a tortuous journey as airport staffing shortages threaten to create long lines in terminals.

The U.K. Airport Operators Association warned on Friday that a tight labor market, coronavirus-related absences and delays in government-mandated background checks for new and returning employees are putting the system under strain and could “mean longer queues at peak travel times.”

Ryanair Holdings Plc Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Leary said he’s concerned about a shortage of security staff that’s held up departing passengers at airports including Dublin and Berlin. And London’s Heathrow hub has identified “resourcing gaps” as it prepares for passenger numbers expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels at peak times in coming weeks.

Upheaval at airports threatens to mar what’s expected to be a bumper Easter for the travel industry as the easing of Covid-related curbs unleashes a rush of northern Europeans to Mediterranean beaches. The situation could be exacerbated by people having fallen out of practice with intricacies of negotiating an airport after two years of lockdowns and restrictions.

“For many passengers this will be the first time they have traveled abroad since the beginning of the pandemic and the processes required may seem unfamiliar,” AOA CEO Karen Dee said in an emailed release.

School Holidays

The Easter surge begins this week with the start of school vacations in Britain and parts of Germany, the two biggest originating markets for visitors to holiday hot-spots such as the Spanish costas, Greece and the Canary Islands.

Ryanair on Friday called on the Irish government to address a staffing crisis at Dublin Airport, which it said has already forced thousands of people to wait in security lines for as much as two hours, causing many to miss their flights.

O’Leary told Bloomberg Television on Thursday that whereas airlines have a large pool of pilots and other skilled staff to recruit from following firings at rivals, airports are finding it tough to fill basic posts.

“We’ve seen the airports struggle to recruit people in security, in airport handling, those kinds of lower-paid jobs,” the CEO said, adding that he sees “those kinds of pinch-points affecting the travel experience across Europe this summer.”

Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport prior to the pandemic, has lingering concerns about the number of Border Force officials deployed to vet arrivals, though attention has now shifted to getting departing travelers through check-in and baggage scans. 

The hassles have been compounded by tech issues at British Airways, the biggest operator at Heathrow. Last week it slowed its ramp-up of flights, citing crowding issues tied to Terminal 4’s closure.

“We have deployed extra colleagues across Heathrow to help passengers get on their journeys as quickly and smoothly as possible,” a spokeswoman for Heathrow said.

While the hub is hiring thousands of people and reopening mothballed facilities, background checks required for working in an airport mean it can be six months before they start work, she said.