Furious passengers have said they endured long waits to get through passport control at Manchester Airport yesterday.
Holidaymakers returning to the UK said immigration desks were woefully understaffed, leading to huge queues of incoming passengers.
It is understood the long waits were caused when seven flights landed at the airport in quick succession, but the airport denies the wait was ever longer than 42 minutes.
This was the scene at Manchester airport yesterday after long queues formed at immigration
There were long queues at Manchester Airport’s terminal 3 yesterday as border guards struggled to cope with a number of incoming flights
The airport’s Terminal 3 was said to be one of the worst hit yesterday afternoon and evening.
Steve Bridge, 51, from Chorley, said: ‘I have never seen anything like it. We were left queuing up the stairs, we weren’t even allowed to go in the terminal there were people still on the tarmac.
‘It just spoils your holiday. We came back from Palma, it was an absolute breeze. Then, when we landed in Manchester it was absolute chaos.’
Another passenger said: ‘The manager for the airport said ‘It’s Ryanair’s’ when I asked what was going on.
‘It was mayhem, people pushing in from all directions. Looks like it’s the airport not coping as there were seven flights that pulled in, in a short succession.
‘These flights are booked in advance – how can they not manage this?’
Others took to Twitter to vent their fury, with one tweeting: ‘Spending four hours in Manchester, is there any better way to start your birthday.’
Another added: ‘What a joke Manchester Airport is. Two hours from landing to get through passport control to my car. Time to start flying from elsewhere!’
Passengers went online to complain about the long queues getting through immigration
The airport, which has recently introduced a new £4 ‘fast track’ lane at immigration, transfered complaints to the Home Office.
A Manchester Airport spokesman, said: ‘Monday afternoon was particularly busy in Terminal 3 which meant queues built up in the immigration hall, with the longest wait for passport control being 42 minutes.
‘We want all passengers arriving into Manchester to have a pleasant journey through the airport and we will continue to work with UK Border Force to ensure the arrivals process is as smooth as possible.’
A spokesman for the government department said: ‘The security of our border is paramount – which is why 100 per cent of scheduled passengers are checked when arriving in the UK.
‘While every effort is made to keep delays for passengers to a minimum, when very large numbers of passengers arrive in a short space of time, it can mean a longer wait while these essential border security checks are conducted.’