British Airways issues new baggage advice to passengers as travel chaos hits airports

Passengers travelling with British Airways are being urged to drop their suitcases and luggage off the night before their flight to avoid delays and travel chaos.

It comes as BA, along with other major airlines such as EasyJet and TUI, have cancelled thousands of flights leaving holidaymakers stranded and facing lengthy queues at airports.

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Travellers flying from London Gatwick or Terminal 5 at London Heathrow are being urged to check their bags early to avoid the chaos.

Passengers were given the advice via email with the airline saying they want “to do everything we can to help you avoid spending your time queuing”, the Mirror reports.

Why is British Airways offering a pre-flight bag service?

Last month the airline confirmed that 16,000 flights would be axed between March and October.

In recent months British Airways has been forced to reduce its flight schedule to try and avoid cancellations at short notice.

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They have also cancelled UK flights to Miami, Hong Kong and Tokyo throughout the summer, with plans to scrap the routes for at least four months.

Amid the chaos, the airline is offering this service to help passengers have a problem-free experience at the airport.

All passengers on the booking must be present to check in bags, so entire families would need to travel to the airport in the evening and then return the following morning for their flight.

Last summer they ran an “overnight bag drop service” when it faced staff shortages.

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What other airlines are offering this?

TUI has told passengers to drop off their bags the day before at some airports, for any Brits who are staying over before their flight.

The airline has also asked passengers not to arrive too early at the airport to prevent huge queues.

Thousands of Brits faced huge queues, cancelled flights and missed holidays due to the problems across the UK over the weekend.

Both TUI and EasyJet were forced to cancel hundreds of flights between them.

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EasyJet has confirmed that more than 200 flights will be cancelled over the next 10 days - just days after an IT glitch grounded hundreds of flights.

What is the situation like at major UK airports?

Passengers compared Bristol Airport to a "zoo" this weekend while those in Manchester reportedly waited four hours for a pilot to show up.

One person tweeted: "Bristol Zoo, sorry airport, was the same for the Mrs on Friday.

“She made her flight only because it was delayed.”

Another wrote: "Arrived at Bristol airport at 11AM for our 2PM flight to Gran Canaria to find out it has been delayed for seven hours.

“Not scheduled to leave until 20.55."

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One family said they were informed by text from TUI that their £4,500 trip, including flights and an all-inclusive hotel, were cancelled.

George Sharp told The Mirror: “It was like circumstances I’ve never ever heard of before.

“They went to board and then they cancelled not just the flight but the entire holiday.

“TUI staff refused to face up to anyone and the police arrived to tell them to go back through security to collect their bags and go home.”

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A spokesman for TUI said: “We understand how disappointing and frustrating this is and we do apologise for any inconvenience caused.

“We would like to thank customers at Manchester airport today for their patience and understanding at this exceptionally busy time.”

A spokesman for Manchester Airport said they were in talks with airline operators to resolve the problem.

A version of this article originally appeared on NationalWorld.com

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