Europe’s new Entry-Exit System, or EES, is still creating long queues and disruption at airports across the continent ahead of the summer travel peak. Stefan Schulte, president of ACI Europe, warned that airports could face severe congestion in the coming weeks unless changes are made. Speaking at an industry event in Prague, he said, “Passengers are standing in queues for hours at peak times, and I simply do not know how we will cope in the coming weeks with the expected increase in traffic.” He urged politicians to stop pretending the system is working well and said it is not.
EES, which was fully launched earlier this year, requires travelers arriving from outside the European Union to provide biometric data when entering and leaving most European countries. Schulte wants border authorities to be allowed to suspend the system when needed, to prevent further chaos, and to review the procedures. He said this was a matter of respect and fairness to people flying to the EU, as well as protecting the bloc’s reputation as an efficient and welcoming destination.
The system has already caused major delays and missed flights at several major airports, although other locations have reported a smoother rollout. Earlier this month, Athens airport saw huge lines that caused about 20 passengers to miss a flight to London Luton, even though EES was not operating there at the time.
The European Commission, which oversees EES, said airports will be able to suspend the system in certain circumstances until September. Schulte told BBC World at One that governments should intervene and freeze the system rather than leaving each airport to decide on its own while queues build. He warned that the busy travel season will last well past early September and could lead to a “complete collapse of the system.” In Greece, the new checks have already stirred controversy after the tourism minister promised Britons they would not be burdened by the biometric screening, only for the foreign ministry to later deny any such exemption existed.
