17 April 2026 , 10:58
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Passengers at London Stansted faced a night of chaos after queues of more than two hours at security.
Hundreds of travellers looked set to miss flights on Thursday night after arriving at the Essex Airport queues of more than an hour backed up to the entrance of the security area.
No announcements were made by the airport and as of 10.15pm, just two of the 11 security scanners were open while furious passengers watched on.
People on the scene were told there wasn’t enough staff.
A passenger who was due to travel on the 10pm flight to Dublin told ‘There’s a total lack of staff. There are women with babies in buggies and prams who don’t know if they’re going to have to sleep in the airport tonight.’
‘People are here in the queue having to watch FlightRadar to see if their flight has taken off, it’s just a total lack of communication.’
Passengers on the 9.55pm flight to Frankfurt Hahn, the 10pm to Dublin and the 10.05pm to Copenhagen were all affected.
One man was in tears and said he was going to miss a wedding in Denmark tomorrow.
One passenger paid for fast track and went to that section, only to find the queue had been closed.
Tourists are now stranded in London and have been left with no choice but to book last-minute accommodation.
A ground worker was heard telling passengers: ‘We are just as furious as you are.’
World Affairs Correspondent