Tens of thousands of Britons are stranded at airports across Europe after another series of canceled flights, as the chaos of travel in the half-season shows no signs of losing weight.
Many families and couples were due to return to the UK on Saturday, but 100 flights were canceled due to continuing staffing problems that have plagued airports for months.
Dozens of flights have already been canceled on Sunday, with the biggest problem in Gatwick, where Wizz Air, British Airways and easyJet have suspended flights.
The long queues, mass cancellations and appalling delays facing passengers are Brexit’s fault, said London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
He called on the government to ease immigration rules and allow European workers who were employed in the aviation industry before Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic to return to fill labor shortages in the sector.
However, Transport Minister Grant Shaps flatly rejected calls to open the door to more “cheap” foreign workers in an effort to ease pressure on the aviation sector.
He accused travel chiefs of “cutting too far” during the pandemic and said the sector needed to solve the problems.
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Pictured: queues at Eurostar in Paris
The first image shows the Gare du Nord terminal, and the second is the Eurostar waiting room.
(Laura Hampson)
(Laura Hampson)
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 15:16
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Is the chaos of travel and passports new normal for global Britain?
This chaos of travel and these delays in passports do not look much like the Brexit they promised us, Sean O’Grady writes.
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 14:42
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Grant Shaps rejects calls for “cheap” foreign workers to resolve airport chaos
Grant Shaps rejected calls to open the door to more “cheap” foreign workers in a bid to ease pressure on the aviation sector.
The transport secretary said he would do absolutely everything he could to make sure holidaymakers could get away with it in the summer, but did not allow a temporary influx of migrants to overcome labor shortages.
Asked if he would temporarily allow more foreign workers in the industry to ease the pressure on staff, he told the BBC’s Sunday Morning program: “The answer may not always be to reach for the lever labeled” More immigration “.
“There is no attraction to alleviate this.”
Mr Schaps also denied that the UK’s divorce from Brussels was a major factor behind the chaos and queues seen at British airports during the four-day Platinum Journey break, pointing to widespread unrest elsewhere in Europe.
Mr Schaps added that the Brexit vote was about moving away from hiring “cheap labor from elsewhere”.
“I did not vote for Brexit, but the country did, and we made our choice – we want a high-wage and highly skilled economy,” he said. This means that the aviation sector, like all other sectors, and as heavy goods vehicles have done, the truck driving sector needs to change. “
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 2:15 p.m.
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Eurostar update from Paris
Passengers scheduled for the train at 9.12 CEST by Paris Gare du Nord have been told that their train must be ready to leave at 15.15 CEST, six hours after its originally scheduled departure.
As this news was announced by members of the Eurostar team, there was applause and applause throughout the Eurostar waiting terminal, where passengers on four delayed trains waited for nearly five hours.
An earlier electrical outage just outside Paris was the cause of Eurostar’s delays today, with several trains from Paris to London canceled as British holidaymakers tried to return home for the end of school holidays.
Passengers on the other three trains were told by 12 noon that they should be able to return today.
Joe Middleton June 5, 2022 2:00 p.m.
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Thousands of passengers diverted after power outages arrive at Luton airport
At least 18 flights, believed to carry a total of about 3,000 passengers, were diverted after a power outage at Luton Airport on Sunday morning.
One Wizz Air plane landed in Beauvais, northern France, while others were diverted to Doncaster, Liverpool and East Midlands airports.
Luton Airport initially told passengers: “An earlier power outage in the area has led to a temporary loss of some navigation equipment, which means some disruption to flights.
The plane cannot land for about three hours between 7 and 10 in the morning. Most of the arrivals were with Wizz from Eastern European airports, but the arrival of easyJet from Belfast was redirected to Gatwick.
Simon Calder has the latest.
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 13:42
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Grant Shaps says Brexit is not to blame for the airport chaos
Grant Shaps says Brexit is not to blame for the airport chaos
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 13:28
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Eurostar trains from Paris to London are late
Laura Hampson reports that trains running from Paris to London on Eurostar have been delayed from 9 a.m. CEST this morning due to an electrical failure just outside the French capital.
There are currently four trains with passengers waiting to board the service back to London with queues running along the gates of Gare du Nord, and trains were later canceled.
An update provided by the Eurostar team at 12:30 CEST told passengers that the electrical failure was more serious than expected and that trains would not run until mid-afternoon, probably from 16:00 CEST onwards.
However, this is only an estimate. Passengers have been told they can cancel their tickets if they wish, but there are a large number of British passengers in the waiting room hoping to return today.
Last night’s thunderstorm means temperatures are hot and humid today, but Eurostar officials say the air conditioner will not be included in the Gate du Nord terminal until June 21.
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 13:24
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Delays and long queues at Bristol Airport
Vacationers reported long queues at Bristol Airport on Sunday morning. A number of passengers turned to social networks, upset by the delays.
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 13:10
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Grant Shaps rejects the introduction of an army to end travel chaos
Transport Minister Grant Shaps said he did not expect to call on the army to help with airport problems.
Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary suggested on Thursday that the armed forces could be recruited to transport hubs over the next three to four months to prevent travel problems. The Liberal Democrats also suggest that this could help alleviate the problems facing passengers.
Asked on the BBC’s Sunday Morning program if the army would be deployed if things did not improve over the next few weeks, Mr Schaps said: “The army is not a quick solution to every problem. Secondly, they are stationed in increasing numbers in Eastern Europe, in the Baltic States, in what is a military situation and what is what the army is mainly there for.
“Airports and airlines will have to solve this problem. The government will support them in every way, but I do not expect this to include calling up the army. “
Joe Middleton June 5, 2022 12:50 p.m.
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Brexit is to blame for the chaos at airports, Sadiq Khan said
Brexit is to blame for the chaos at British airports, which has led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights and disrupted plans to travel thousands of people in half, said London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Mr Hahn called on the government to ease immigration rules to allow airport workers and airlines that have returned to their EU countries after Brexit to return to the UK to address staff shortages.
But Transport Minister Grant Schaps denied the problems were caused by the UK’s withdrawal from the EU and rejected calls for aviation workers to be added to the list of shortages of professions with less control over migrants.
Joe Middleton, June 5, 2022 12:41 p.m.
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