Report shaming airport’s security waiting times causes turbulence

MANCHESTER Airport is the worst for waiting times going through security at the UK’S larger airports, according to a Which? investigation.

Average waiting times at the northern hub range from 17 minutes at Terminal 1 to 15.5 minutes at Terminals 2 and 3, says a survey commissioned by the consumer group.

By comparison, going through security at Heathrow Terminal 5 takes an average 8.6 minutes. But Manchester’s airport authorities were quick to criticise the findings, which it said were based on human estimates with a small sample size.

Which? said it stands by its research, based on an online survey completed by 4,000 members who were asked to estimate how long they had to wait to go through security. Its information on Manchester was based on 278 responses received about Terminal 1, 229 for Terminal 2 and 168 for Terminal 3.

The consumer group said the airport appeared to have downgraded waiting time targets from getting 95 per cent of passengers through security in under eight minutes in 2017, to getting 92 per cent through within 15 minutes now.

The study ranked Belfast International as the worst small airport for security queues, with a typical wait time of 22 minutes. Southampton and Lon- don Southend were found to be best, with waiting times of 5.2 minutes.

Last month Which? rated Belfast International the UK’S worst airport – with passengers frustrated by problems including long queues, crowded terminals and expensive parking charges. Rory Boland, Which? travel editor, said: “Never-ending queues through security are a pain at the best of times, but if you are left waiting for hours on end you could find your flight has left without you. To add insult to injury, if this happens you are unlikely to qualify for compensation as security is out of the airline’s control.

“Airlines rarely delay a flight due to long queues at security, so it’s important to arrive at the airport in plenty of time, especially if flying from Manchester or Belfast.”

A Manchester Airports Group (MAG) spokesman said: “We monitor actual waiting time performance in security on a daily basis. For most of the last year the average waiting time at Manchester Airport was around two minutes. Even in peak season, the maximum average waiting time in any month was five minutes and six seconds, in July 2019.

“Meanwhile, at London Stansted, in August 2019, 98.5 per cent of passengers got through security in less than 10 minutes.

“We are working hard to reduce waiting times further by investing even more in facilities, staffing levels and training in our security areas.”