Birmingham Airport bosses address passenger concerns and queue chaos

As Birmingham Airport undergoes significant changes, we've taken your burning questions straight to the airport chiefs as the summer holiday season approaches. In recent weeks, there have been reports of "chaos" with hundreds of passengers snaking through queues to enter the terminal amidst ongoing construction work, especially during the busy early morning rush.

The congestion tends to ease by mid-morning, yet confusion reigns among travellers regarding the updated 100ml maximum rule for liquids, exacerbated by the limited queuing area due to a halt in the rollout of the airport's "next generation" security hall. This has led to some passengers arriving up to seven hours before their flights, occasionally bringing along non-compliant items such as pots of slime.

BirminghamLive has been consistently live-blogging from the airport to keep our readers informed. We're committed to accurately reflecting the current situation, whether it's a smooth and speedy experience or scenes of greater turmoil.

Birmingham Airport answers your most pressing questions, reports Birmingham Live.

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1) Is it possible to implement queue markers indicating the estimated wait time from different points in the line, similar to those found at theme parks?

No. The environment of an airport and the security sensitivities/requirements in place are somewhat different to the likes of Alton Towers.

Getting on a plane and the time it takes to ensure everyone will be kept safe, is different to getting on a rollercoaster and should, rightly take longer.

2) There used to be a real-time tracker on the website about wait times. Will you bring this back?

The real-time tacker was an estimate of queuing at the time. When the building works commenced this facility was removed.

We will review availability of this function, once building works have been completed.

3) Why were only five lanes in use on Sunday, June 16, when the queue was two hours long?

Will there be a time when all 7 are up and running?

The queue was not two hours on Sunday. 75% of our customers travelling through waited less than 20 minutes for security.

Even at our very busy peak in the morning the queue was less than 60 minutes to access security. Read our full report on Birmingham Airport's denial of two-hour queues.

Lane usage is based on demand and throughput of passengers. At the time you reference, three in four passengers were being processed in less than 20 minutes.

5) When is your peak period and what is being done to improve things for summer?

We see peaks across the year based on route offerings, different passenger profiles and demographics. Summer, which we now see extending as far as October, and Winter are our main peaks.

As recently announced, we have established a new temporary facility where a third-party customer service team will operate 'liquid check stations'. This will ensure that cabin baggage is compliant when processing through security.

6) How many hours do you recommend people turn up before their flight?

Our advice for all passengers, whether they have checked baggage or just hand luggage, is to arrive at the time recommended by their airline. This is typically between two to three hours before the flight.

However, this information is included in all bookings as it aligns with when the airline opens the check-in desk. Despite media hype, some passengers are arriving at the airport 5 6 hours before their flight.

Since June 3, no known passengers have missed their flights due to queuing.

7) Some days seem busier and have big problems less so can you please give people an idea of the best days to fly?

Over the past 8-10 days, we have not experienced significant queues. The introduction of additional measures to assist customers with the liquid rule has improved the flow through security.

As an operational airport, each day is different. We have also implemented additional measures to ensure our customers understand the 100ml rule before they process security.

8) The queues appear to build up around 4am and continue for several hours what is your peak period for flights and therefore your peak period for the security queue?

Our first planned peak of the day typically occurs in the early morning. However, due to security concerns and risks, we never disclose specific details about passenger peaks as this information could be misused.

We've noticed that passengers are arriving too early for their flights, particularly those only travelling with hand luggage. This affects the number of passengers security is expecting at any given time.

Therefore, our main advice is for customers to arrive at the time recommended by their airline, rather than relying on media or social channels.

Regarding the use of plastic bags for 100ml items, these are no longer necessary. If a passenger chooses to use a plastic or toiletry bag, it's fine as long as no single container holds more than 100ml of liquid.