Passengers Arriving At UK Airports Face Long Delays As Passport E-Gates Fail - Reports

Travelers flying into major airports across the United Kingdom are facing hours-long delays at passport checks on Saturday after their electronic border control system, known as e-gates, went down at the beginning of the bank holiday weekend, media reported

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 27th May, 2023) Travelers flying into major airports across the United Kingdom are facing hours-long delays at passport checks on Saturday after their electronic border control system, known as e-gates, went down at the beginning of the bank holiday weekend, media reported.

The issue is affecting "a number of airports," including Gatwick and Heathrow, the Guardian reported, adding that passports are being checked manually.

A representative for Gatwick airport was quoted as saying by the newspaper that the problem started on Friday evening. London's Heathrow airport confirmed the outage, adding that the issue "is impacting a number of ports of entry and is not Heathrow specific.

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The Home Office tweeted that it is "working to resolve the issue as soon as possible" and "liaising with port operators and airlines to minimise disruption for travelers."

Separate IT issues affected 20,000 British Airways passengers on Friday, prompting over 175 flights to be canceled, the newspaper reported. Ferry services between the UK city of Dover and France's Calais were also hit by disruptions due to problems with electronic systems at the French passport control, the report added.