Birmingham airport strike ‘shouldn’t affect passengers heading out for Christmas holidays’
But those arriving at the airport may face delays.
Around 1,000 Border Force staff members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) at Birmingham, Manchester, Heathrow, Cardiff, Gatwick and Glasgow airports will strike daily from December 23 until the end of the year, except December 27.
The action is part of a bitter dispute over wages, pensions and jobs.
There are fears that delays in checking the passports of arriving passengers could lead to long queues and even people being held up on planes, disrupting later departures.
Birmingham Airport says all passengers departing to all destinations will not be affected and passengers arriving from the Republic of Ireland, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands will also not be affected .
Nick Barton, Managing Director of Birmingham Airport, said: ‘Throughout the period of the Border Force strike, we and our airline partners will be operating our normal schedule of flights both to and from England. Birmingham Airport.
βThe Border Force strike will not affect any departing passengers, regardless of their destination, and for incoming passengers we have mitigation plans which aim to make their entry into the UK as quick and easy as possible. “
An emergency team of Ministry of Defense personnel will cover absent Border Force workers at Birmingham Airport to ensure the Immigration and Customs process runs as efficiently as possible on strike days.
Birmingham Airport customer service teams will also be on hand to help people get around as quickly as possible and they will direct people to the correct queues.
Birmingham Airport Insurance comes as airlines have been told by the aviation regulator to ‘look after their passengers’ during strikes.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said travelers should be provided with food, drink and overnight accommodation if flights are delayed or cancelled, but warned customers are unlikely are entitled to compensation.
CAA Consumer Director Paul Smith said: ‘We expect the UK Border Force strikes could lead to longer than normal queues and waiting times on arrival at the UK border. , as well as possible flight disruptions.
βIn the event of delays and cancellations, airlines have an obligation to take care of their passengers.
“When a flight is cancelled, airlines also have an obligation to help passengers find an alternative flight or provide a refund, although, given the circumstances, passengers may not be able to get to your destination as quickly as we or the airlines would like.
βWe expect airlines to do what they can to minimize overall disruption to passengers, and this includes proactively providing passengers with updates and information about their rights when flights are disrupted.
“Border Force strikes are beyond the control of airlines, so customers are unlikely to be entitled to compensation for delays and cancellations resulting from these strikes.”
The Home Office has warned passengers to ‘prepare for longer waiting times at UK border control’.
Comments are closed.