Manchester Airport bosses asked firefighters to work on the baggage belts amid a workforce shortage sparking fears of more disruption for passengers in the busy months ahead.
Following the aviation sector being savaged by the pandemic, it was estimated there were more than 2,000 redundancies made at Manchester Airport.
But now travel restrictions are lifting and passenger numbers are on the rise, questions are being asked if there is a sufficient workforce to meet the demand.
READ MORE: Manchester Airport huge queues see travellers 'miss flights'
Queues at Manchester Airport have been branded "beyond a joke" as some travellers reportedly missed their flights.
The airport has been hit by delays and long queues as it's inundated with "a greater number of passengers than expected," according to an airport spokesperson.
A staff member at Manchester Airport, who did not want to be named, told the MEN : “It’s been so bad that they have been asking firefighters, engineers and parking staff to offload the bags onto the conveyors in the Arrivals hall.
“I think the summer is going to be horrendous, at this rate we just won’t have the staff, and morale is already low.
"I just hope that we get the staff we need in time and get back to normal."
It's understood firefighters refused to take on the baggage duties - although staff from other departments have stepped in to help.
The staffing shortage, with bosses struggling to fill the vacancies left by the mass exodus, is understood to have hit a range of departments, including security and agencies which handle passengers' baggage.
There are now fears over how the airport will cope when much larger numbers pass through during the busy summer months.
Manchester Airport said that in recent months, there have been a small number of instances when they, and other organisations, have asked other teams to support the baggage operation for a 'short period of time'.
They said they were working to ensure all third parties had the support and resource they needed as the aviation industry continues to recover.
Manchester Airport is currently undergoing an urgent recruitment drive ahead of the summer months to replace staff made redundant when the pandemic decimated the airline industry.
Speaking about the baggage handling shortages, a spokesperson for Manchester Airport said: “In recent months, there have been a small number of instances when handling agents have identified short-term resource issues.
"On these occasions, Manchester Airport and several other organisations asked some of their teams to support the baggage operation for a short period of time to minimise disruption to customers.
“It was pleasing to see colleagues from a range of different organisations and departments come together to help each other in this way and, moving forward, we are working closely with all third parties to ensure they have the support and resource they need as the aviation industry continues to recover.”
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
