The boss of Manchester Airport Group has said that simple fact is that we don’t currently have the number of staff we need to provide the level of service that our passengers deserve
Writing on the airport’s website in a letter to passengers published this morning, Charlie Cornish said that First and foremost,
“I want to say that I understand passengers’ frustrations with the queues and congestion they’ve experienced in recent weeks, and I apologise to anyone who has been affected by the disruption.”
Cornish defended the way the airport had to let people go during the pandemic saying that
“We had to cut costs just to survive – it was as simple as that. We reduced expenditure wherever we could, and as a last resort we had to offer colleagues the option of voluntary redundancy because of the uncertainty about when international travel would resume.”
However,he added,”Despite our efforts since last Autumn, the tight labour market around the airport has meant we have just not been able to hire people quickly enough to establish a full-strength team.”
Cornish said that While he still expect most passengers to get through in less than 30-40 minutes, there will be times over the next few months when waiting times will rise to between 60 and 90 minutes.
The airport he said is focused on getting back to normal in time for the peak summer season but for the moment he is advising passengers to arrive at the airport three hours before their flight leaves, to allow enough time to check-in, get through security and reach the departure gate.
