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Original poster

Manchester airport

121 replies

Mam576 · 28/03/2022 23:25

Due to fly from Manchester airport on Thursday Mornjng with my LO and I’m so nervous about the queue times. 5 hours to get through and people missing flights! Anybody had any experience in the last couple of days?

OP posts:

BarbaraofSeville · 29/03/2022 08:31

No recent experience (it took us 3 hours last October, they were pulling people forwards when they were about 40 mins before departure) but we're flying on Friday morning and I've seen the news reports and I'm concerned.

I think we're going to aim for 3 hours ahead (I haven't actually had this discussion with DP yet) and fingers crossed. We're hand luggage only and have fast track passes so hopefully that will help a little 5 hour queues just sound so bad .

WhatHaveIFound · 29/03/2022 08:39

Not in the last few days but last month. It took 45 mins just to get through fast track. I reckon it must have been 3-4 hrs in the regular queue.

DH was supposed to fly from there again last week but changed his flight as his colleague didn't have fast track and they seem to have disabled booking it on their website.

FlorhamPark · 29/03/2022 08:56

I flew from there last week and sailed through - that was Terminal One.

MissAmbrosia · 29/03/2022 11:52

I flew back from there yesterday morning - Terminal 2. It was chaotic unfortunately. I bought the security fast track for £5 and was very glad I did - we got directed straight past the massive queue and straight into the security hall - then maybe 30 mins still in a queue. My plastic bag was too large, I had more than one lighter in my handbag. Loads of people were having their bags pulled over for further checks. I got to the airport 4 hours before my flight, but couldn't check in for the first hour. They were calling people to the front for each plane wanting to leave.

Original poster

Mam576 · 29/03/2022 12:20

@MissAmbrosia I've tried to buy the security fast track but they've now stopped selling them departing, everybody must have the same idea. Thank you. Hope you had a lovely holiday.

OP posts:

MissAmbrosia · 29/03/2022 12:31

Oh that's a shame! Get there early then - not sure if you can see in advance when check in starts/can be done on line. Do you need to drop bags? Make sure to go the loo before hand. Take a snack. Double check you meet all the security guidelines - no liquids / electronics left inside your bag. Plastic bag for liquids must be regulation size or they make you repack it. I have used the same plastic bag for the last several flights and never had an issue with it before.

Fingers crossed it won't be so bad.

Original poster

Mam576 · 29/03/2022 12:41

@MissAmbrosia I hope not. First time travelling as a single parent with 6 year old. Hoping she doesn't keep needing the toilet as I'm not sure how I'm going to be able to do it!

OP posts:

AboutYouToday · 29/03/2022 21:06

I’m having kittens now because we are flying on Friday. And there are no fast track passes left. Can anyone shed any light on why it is so busy? There isn’t a huge number of flights before us

Aposterhasnoname · 29/03/2022 21:09

Posted this on another thread, I flew out last week. The queue for tui check in went down the plexiglass tunnel almost to the raddison, at 4am. Security was a joke and when we boarded we were left sat on the plane waiting for the bags loading and the pilots paperwork for an hour and a half. The crew said that this was a good day. Sorry!

Get there very, very, early.

Deadivy · 29/03/2022 21:14

I flew out of Terminal 1 yesterday afternoon. Got there 3 hours in advance and it took 1hr 30 minutes in total to bag drop and then get through security using Fast track. The non fast track queue for security was busy, around 15 rows deep of queuing, the staff checked who was queuing for flights due to leave soon and rushed them through security, they were good at this and made sure everyone got through.

Go as early as possible, especially if you haven't got Fast Track.

Ilikewinter · 29/03/2022 21:14

What a shambles, Manchester airport has never been great but from recent reports its just shocking. Pre covid we'd fly out of there probably 3 times a year, now ive lost the travel bug and am settling for a caravan in Wales instead!.
Good luck OP

FruitToast · 29/03/2022 21:24

We stopped flying from Manchester pre-covid after a couple of horrible experiences. If they're complaining now it must really be bad! We arrived just over 3 hours in advance. There were people queuing out the door for bag drop. No one on oversized baggage so a queue of people with tired, bored toddlers trying to get car seats checked in. Then a baggage drop broke so they moved everyone across from an entire airline check in in front of people that had already been waiting to drop of prams and car seats etc (obviously chaos and much shouting ensued) then an hour in security before being pulled out the queue because we were about to miss out flight. 9 month old had filled his nappy and absolutely nothing I could do until after seatbelt sign was off. I have sworn never to fly from there again!!

FruitToast · 29/03/2022 21:26

They are good at pulling people out the queue for flights though. Just take into account you might not get to use any of the airport facilities and be prepared to buy stuff on the plane if necessary.

Toomuchleopard · 29/03/2022 21:28

I flew out of Manchester on 11th March and back on 15th and it was totally fine both ways. This was terminal 1.

Frazzled2207 · 29/03/2022 21:31

@FruitToast

They are good at pulling people out the queue for flights though. Just take into account you might not get to use any of the airport facilities and be prepared to buy stuff on the plane if necessary.

I hope this is true but there are people on Twitter claiming they were in the queue for four hours told flight would be held and it wasn’t and got through to find out flight gone and had to pay £0000s for new flights and do it all again. Nightmare.

hamstersarse · 29/03/2022 21:31

I’ve done terminal 1 in the past week. It was fine, nothing unusual, about 30 mins through security

declutteringmymind · 29/03/2022 21:34

It's awful. Just tried to book fast track for a week on Thursday and none available. Apparently they've not been able to open T3 so all flights have been moved to T1. They're already short staffed. Here's something my husband sent to me:

Manchester Airport was due to re-open Terminal 3 on Sunday. This is the first day of the Summer flying season and was meant to add capacity ahead of the busy Easter period.

'The airport has found some technical issues with the terminal, it seems, which cannot be fixed quickly.

This means that there will be NO check-in available at Terminal 3 from Sunday. All passengers due to fly from Terminal 3 need to check-in and clear security at Terminal 1, which is a mess at the best of times. This situation will continue until the end of April, apparently.

Click to learn more: www.headforpoints.com/2022/03/24/manchester-airport-pulls-terminal-3-re-opening/

#manchesterairport

BarbaraofSeville · 29/03/2022 21:34

@FruitToast, I've also decided to avoid flying from Manchester where I can avoid it.

Leeds is our nearest airport but doesn't have the same choice. Liverpool is only slightly further than Manchester for us, but the extra journey time is more than made up for by much smaller quicker to navigate airport.

Unfortunately this time, we were forced into flying from Manchester, as it's a work trip for DP, but going forwards, it's my fifth choice, Leeds, Liverpool, Doncaster, don't fly at all and maybe then use Manchester.

AboutYouToday · 29/03/2022 21:35

I think it’s terminal 2 that’s the issue

MissAmbrosia · 29/03/2022 21:48

It was Terminal 2 I flew from yesterday. On Saturday I arrived about 11 and went up to departures to walk down the tunnel towards the station. Everything was fine, no hordes. Yesterday morning I got there at 7.30 and it was chaos. I thought the queue was for the Jet 2 checkin, but no, security - from one end of the departs hall to the other, before you even got through into security.

Abraxan · 29/03/2022 22:05

We went through Manchester Airport in February half term. It was busy. We got to 30-40 minutes before our flight and we're still in the bag check queue. We told one of the officials and they whisked us through straight away. There were long queues to check in and at bag check.

Friends went through last week and paid for express passport/bag check and said they got through really quickly that morning.

We were both travelling early morning.

MissAmbrosia · 29/03/2022 22:54

Sounds like fast track is no longer available. I'm not surprised.

Frazzled2207 · 29/03/2022 23:00

@MissAmbrosia

Sounds like fast track is no longer available. I'm not surprised.

I think it is just sells out. Obvs it makes no sense to sell unlimited number of fast track tickets otherwise everyone would.l

hellcatspangle · 30/03/2022 15:07

What on earth are you supposed to do when bag drop doesn't even open until two hours before your flight and security is taking 3 hours plus?! Any ideas welcome (fast track not available)

Starisnotanumber · 30/03/2022 15:23

Went through terminal 2 20th March and back terminal 2 27th March with Jet2.Was quite worried like you as Sunday flights but no issues at all.
About 5 minutes for baggage drop with jet2 and they checked we had our covid certificate vand Spanish entry form .
30 minutes at most through security have been in worse pre covid.
On return no problem apart from the walk from the plane to passport control which was empty.
Bags at pick up belt by the time we landed

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