![\"Passport](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1_JH_MEN_120426_FLIGHT.jpg\")
<\/p>\nIt’s thought around 100 passengers due to board the Manchester-bound flight were left behind due to major delays at passport control<\/p>\n
21:42, 12 Apr 2026Updated 22:19, 12 Apr 2026<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Passport control delays meant passengers missed the Manchester-bound flight(Image: @Emily_Benn20)<\/p>\n
Passengers were left stranded in an airport in Milan amid border control chaos after an easyJet flight back to Manchester left without them on Sunday (April 12).<\/p>\n
It is thought there were around 100 passengers due to fly back to Manchester Airport<\/a> on the 11am flight that were then left stranded at Milan Linate because of border control checks. Pictures and videos shared online showed scenes of mayhem as large queues formed at the international airport.<\/p>\n It comes after the UK government updated its guidance to people travelling to the European Schengen area, meaning they may have to register biometric details when they arrive. The implementation of the EU<\/a> entry and exit system (EES) is an electronic system that replaces the physical stamping of passports when going through boarding control.<\/p>\n Get MEN Premium now for just \u00a31 HERE<\/a> \u2013 or get involved in our WhatsApp group by clicking HERE<\/a>. And don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.<\/a><\/p>\n However large queues meant that swathes of customers were left stranded in the airport, and flights took off without them. This included the easyJet service to Manchester. However, the airline said that it held the plane for almost an hour extra, but had to eventually depart due to crew working hours.<\/p>\n In a statement to the M.E.N, easyJet said passengers impacted have now been offered a ‘free flight transfer’ and they they urged passengers to arrive at the airport in plenty of time due to longer wait times. It has also slammed the EES waits that affected passengers as ‘unacceptable’.<\/p>\n There were long queues at the Milan airport border (Image: @Emily_Benn20)<\/p>\n Emily Benn, from Grimsby, was a member of a party of six due to catch the 11am flight back to Manchester. They are now flying into Gatwick and will then pay \u00a3400 for a taxi back to their car at Manchester Airport. She told the M.E.N: “We got to the airport at 8am and our flight was due to leave Milan Linate at 11am.<\/p>\n “As soon as our gate came on the board, we went straight to it and there was already a huge queue. The queue was for three separate flights, and there were hundreds of passengers all trying to get through. The new EES wasn\u2019t working, so we all had to be checked by two people on passport control.<\/p>\n “It got to 11:20am and we were told the flight had left without us. They put us all on a shuttle bus and sent us back to the arrivals area, where we had to go back to the easyJet desk. We were told to rebook flights, so have booked to Gatwick and will then pay \u00a3400 for a taxi back to Manchester as that’s where our car is parked. We are a party of five adults and one child, who is due to have spinal surgery in a few days.”<\/p>\n In another post on X, a passenger wrote: “The 11am from Milan Linate to Manchester left without half the plane! Immigration queue for 1h 30mins. Then got escorted out of the airport and told that the plane had left without us. Had to pay for a hotel and fly to London Gatwick instead of Manchester.”<\/p>\n “What a nightmare!” a third posted. “You abandoned me and 122 other passengers in Milan. You flew to Manchester with 34 onboard. We queued for three hours and all the time the flight info remained at \u2018boarding\u2019 we were then told the delayed flight had left.”<\/p>\n An easyJet spokesperson said: “We are aware that some passengers departing from Milan Linate today experienced longer than usual waiting times at passport control and we advised customers due to fly to allow additional time to make their way through the airport.<\/p>\n “We held flight EJU5420 from Milan to Manchester for nearly an hour to give passengers extra time but it had to then depart due to crew reaching their safety regulated operating hours. Customers who missed the flight have been offered a free flight transfer.<\/p>\n \u201cWe continue to urge border authorities to ensure they make full and effective use of the permitted flexibilities for as long as needed while EES is implemented, to avoid these unacceptable border delays for our customers. While this is outside of our control, we are sorry for any inconvenience caused.”<\/p>\n According to the Gov.uk site, passengers travelling to a country in the Schengen area for a short stay using a UK passport, may be required to register biometric details, such as fingerprints and a photo, upon arrival. Travellers do not need to take any further action and there is no cost for EES registration.<\/p>\n “EES registration is replacing the current system of manually stamping passports when visitors arrive in the EU,” it said. “EES may take each passenger extra time to complete so be prepared to wait longer than usual at the border.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It’s thought around 100 passengers due to board the Manchester-bound flight were left behind due to major delays…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":527661,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[49,2200,50,51,47,52,48,387],"class_list":{"0":"post-527660","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-manchester-airport","10":"tag-news","11":"tag-top-news","12":"tag-top-stories","13":"tag-topnews","14":"tag-topstories","15":"tag-travel"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=527660"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527660\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/527661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=527660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=527660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=527660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"There](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1_JH_MEN_120426_FLIGHT1JPG.jpg\")
<\/p>\n