Travel chaos at Manchester Airport as e-gates go down in 'nationwide' outage

Charlotte Hadfield

7 May 2024 at 5:32 pm·1-min read

Holidaymakers are facing travel chaos at Manchester Airport this evening due to a "nationwide outage".

Electronic border gates at passport control have been hit with a technical issue at a number of UK airports, including Manchester, Heathrow, Stansted, and Gatwick. Liverpool John Lennon Airport does not have e-gates.

However, a LJLA spokesperson confirmed the issues are affecting other Border Force IT systems, which may cause some delays for passengers arriving into Liverpool this evening.

It has not yet been specified what has caused the technical issues. Photos shared on social media show huge queues at border control at Manchester Airport as holidaymakers return to the UK.

Manchester Airport tweeted: "UK Border Force is experiencing nationwide issues affecting eGates at a number of airports, including Manchester. Our teams are supporting UK Border Force staff to minimise disruption to passengers while they fix the problem.

"We apologise for any inconvenience caused during this time and thank you for your patience and understanding."

Heathrow Airport also tweeted to say: "We are aware that Border Force is currently experiencing a nationwide issue which is impacting passengers being processed through the Border. Our teams are supporting Border Force with their contingency plans to help resolve the problem as quickly as possible, and we apologise for any impact on your journey."

Liverpool Airport has been contacted for comment.

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