Scotland’s biggest airports say they are ready for the big summer getaway.
Schools started to break up last week and the Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association says the rush is under way at airports.
“The Scottish school holidays began from Friday, so Scotland’s airports will be busier than ever,” it said.
“The good news is that Scottish airports haven’t seen the chaos which some of their English counterparts have but it’s best to be prepared for a longer wait than perhaps pre-pandemic.”
Earlier this month aviation unions warned of a “perfect storm” during peak holiday season due to a shortage in ground staff, baggage handlers and security workers, which led to huge queues in some airports.
They said getting rid of workers when airports were grounded during the pandemic would have a knock-on effect on the busy summer and for years to come, due to the time it would take to recruit and train airport staff.
The Sunday Post also revealed that fire crews attached to Edinburgh Airport were working as baggage handlers to relieve the pressure but yesterday airport bosses said they had the resources to cope with the expected demand. AGS, which owns Glasgow and Aberdeen Airports, said more staff had been recruited: “We’re in a good place and have the resource for demand.”
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Edinburgh Airport is expecting to be almost back at 2019 levels with more than a million passengers per month over the summer. It said: “We share regular queue time updates on our social media during peak hours, and we’d suggest anyone looking for an accurate picture of the situation goes there.
“Passengers can also help by showing up for their check-in desk opening rather than arriving too early as this causes congestion.” Jet2 has launched a huge programme of flights and package holidays from both airports.
The airline said: “We took action to recruit well ahead of the bounce back and as such, customers will continue to see a very visible uniformed presence in our UK airports as well as in our main overseas airports and in resorts during this peak season.”
TUI added: “We’re still working closely with our partners to ensure our holidays can run as smoothly as possible and we can provide customers with the high-quality of service that TUI is known for.”
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