Spain has not gone as far as Greece and temporarily lifted the new EES entry/exit border control system after non-EU passengers, in particular those from the United Kingdom, have been faced with long queues of up to three hours, but the airport authority AENA has apparently instructed staff to do what they can to ease the process and reduce waiting times.
According to VisaHQ while officials at Madrid-Barajas, Barcelona-El Prat, Málaga, Alicante and Palma airports have confirmed that the technology is working correctly, they have acknowledged that passenger volumes at peak times quickly exceeded the capacity of the checkpoints during Easter week.
According to instructions issued to frontline staff on Tuesday evening, airports may temporarily divert families and passengers with reduced mobility to traditional stamping queues when the wait in biometric queues exceeds 25 minutes. They may also stagger flight arrivals by coordinating with Aena’s slot management team, a measure already tested in Málaga. These measures are apparently “adjustments, not a suspension”, and that biometric capture remains mandatory for first-time registrants.
The new EES system which was first rolled out back in October has been heavily criticised by the travel industry and airlines and a number of countries are said to be considering following Greece’s example with the summer season just weeks away and the travel industry having to navigate the Middle East crisis with threats of fuel shortages and increased airfares which are not helping to boost consumer confidence.
The British travel association ABTA has said that as well as applying the contingency measures, destinations and border authorities need to do more to plan for peak travel periods. This should include the use of additional border guards at the busiest times. Mark Tanzer, Chief Executive of ABTA – The Travel Association said: “The ambition of a project like EES means it was never going to go completely smoothly, and we were prepared for that.
"However, what is frustrating is that border authorities have it within their power to ease queues and deal with issues as they arise – but that doesn’t seem to be happening across the board. As we head towards peak travel periods, we’re urging border authorities to plan for busy periods and use the contingency measure available. It’s critical the Commission keeps a close eye on this.”