Ryanair has issued a stark warning to travellers, cautioning that lengthy delays at passport control are expected across 15 European airports this summer due to problems with the European Union's new Entry/Exit System (EES). The airline stated that millions of families could face disruption, with some already missing flights because of excessive queues.
EES Hotspots Identified
In a statement released today, Ryanair identified recurring 'EES hotspots' where passengers are experiencing significant delays due to slow processing times and inadequate passport control queues on both arrivals and departures. The affected airports include Lisbon, Tenerife South, Madrid, Lanzarote, Alicante, Malaga, Milan Bergamo, Milan Malpensa, Verona, Paris Beauvais, Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt Hahn, Krakow, and Budapest.
System Failures and Inadequate Infrastructure
According to Ryanair, months after the EES went live, many airports still lack fully functioning self-service kiosks. Border staffing levels and infrastructure remain insufficient to handle peak passenger volumes, resulting in avoidable delays, longer queues, and unnecessary stress for UK passengers travelling during the busiest holiday period of the year.
Ryanair advises UK passengers travelling to or from non-Schengen destinations, or transiting through affected European airports, to allow extra time and prepare for extended waits at passport control. EES checks may require passport scanning, fingerprint capture, and facial image verification.
Ryanair's Call for Delay
Ryanair's chief operations officer, Neal McMahon, said: "Families heading away for a well-earned summer holiday should be thinking about suitcases, suncream and sangria, not standing in passport queues for hours. The reality is that the EES system isn’t working properly and families are paying the price for a system that does not work months after launch."
McMahon added: "Passengers should not be the testing ground for unfinished border infrastructure. We support calls from EU Member States to urgently extend the EES flexibilities. This will give airports and border authorities the time to improve the infrastructure, fix the broken devices and hire more staff so that families can travel through Europe without disruption."
EES System Background
The EES system was officially launched in the Schengen area on April 10 and requires first-time users to register their fingerprints and facial image into the biometric system. Once collected, the data remains in the system for three years to streamline border control. However, repeated reports of passengers waiting in queues for hours, with some missing flights home, have prompted European airports and airlines to call for the European Commission to suspend the digital system until September.
Ryanair has urged EU Member States to extend current EES flexibilities into early 2027, providing authorities time to fix malfunctioning kiosks, increase staffing levels, and ensure the system operates efficiently before full enforcement.
