Passengers arriving at Manchester Airport have complained of baggage delays of over an hour, as an airline said that longer wait times were the result of “staff shortages”.
Tui said that some customers were experiencing “longer-than-usual queue times for baggage” on Monday. Swissport, which handles baggage for a number of airlines including Tui, apologised to passengers for the delays and said that baggage handlers were facing "challenging conditions" during the busy summer travel season.
Claire Thomas, who had flown with Tui, described the situation at the airport as an “absolute farce”. She wrote on Twitter: “No buses to take us from the plane to Terminal 2 and then an hour wait for bags.”
A Tui spokesperson said: “We can confirm that unfortunately due to staff shortages at Manchester Airport today, some customers are experiencing longer-than-usual queue times for baggage. Please be assured that our teams are working as quickly as they can.”
Other passengers also reported delays in receiving their baggage after landing at the airport.
Michael Driscoll, who had flown to Manchester from Orlando, Florida, said he was also made to wait for over an hour for his bags. He said on Facebook: “Baggage hall packed and many belts with no bags on so obviously they still have not got it right.”
Manchester Airport said they are not involved in the process of offloading bags from aircraft as checked bags are part of the service offered to passengers by airlines. Most airlines contract this process out to handling agents, with Tui using the aviation services company Swissport.
A Swissport spokesperson said: “We apologise to passengers who’ve experienced delays to the return of their baggage at Manchester Airport. Airlines, airports, and aviation services all work together to deliver different elements of a single passenger journey and at busy times like the current peak travel period, the knock-on effects of delays, such as air traffic issues, technical issues and late changes to flight schedules, can create challenging conditions for baggage handlers.
"We understand this is a frustrating situation for passengers and we’re working closely with our airline and airport partners to manage these issues and improve turnaround times for passengers.”
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