Europe's EES Triggers Up to 6-Hour Airport Delays Across 15 Countries
Updated
Updated · Forbes · Jun 23
Europe's EES Triggers Up to 6-Hour Airport Delays Across 15 Countries
3 articles · Updated · Forbes · Jun 23
Summary
Up to six-hour waits and missed flight connections are hitting travelers at European airports as the EU’s Entry/Exit System expands into peak summer travel.
The April 10 biometric border rollout requires first-time visitors to register fingerprints or eye scans at arrival, but kiosk failures, repeat registrations and staffing problems have slowed processing instead of speeding it up.
Milan, Amsterdam and airports in Greece, the Netherlands, France, Germany and Portugal are among the trouble spots; reported waits range from 45 minutes to four hours, with three hours commonly cited.
The system covers the EU except Ireland and Cyprus, plus Schengen countries such as Switzerland and Norway, making major hubs especially risky for passengers connecting onward within or beyond Europe.
Travel industry warnings say routine delays of three hours or more could cost Europe $45.4 billion in visitor spending, and some forecasts suggest the disruption could take up to two years to fix.