Fly from Manchester airport?
Be prepared for winding security lines.
Holidaymakers traveling from Manchester are enduring the longest delays going through the metal detectors.
Almost two thirds of passengers flying from MAN – the UK’s third busiest airport – were stuck in a queue for at least 10 minutes in 2023.
Just 30 percent whizzed through and collected their belongings on the other side in less than five minutes.
Gatwickmeanwhile came to the top of the pack.
Only a fifth of holidaymakers who flew from there last year waited 10 minutes to clear security, according to survey data compiled by the Department for Transport and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
Government researchers surveyed 13,600 passengers about their experiences with security at Britain’s five busiest airports: HeathrowGatwick, Manchester, Stansted and Luton.
When broken down to specific terminals, all three from Manchester came bottom of the table.
When broken down to specific terminals, all three from Manchester came bottom of the table. Manchester Terminal 1 was the worst, with 19 per cent of passengers having to wait more than 20 minutes, followed by Terminal 3 (17 per cent) and Terminal 2 (14 per cent)
Manchester Terminal 1 was the worst, with 19 per cent of passengers having to wait more than 20 minutes, followed by Terminal 3 (17 per cent) and Terminal 2 (14 per cent).
Behind Manchester came Stansted Terminal 1 (7 per cent).
By comparison, the comparative figure stands at just 1 per cent in both Gatwick’s North and South terminals.
Heathrow’s newly refurbished Terminal 4 saw 68 per cent of passengers move through the queue in less than five minutes.
It comes after an investigation earlier this year named and shamed Wizz Air as the worst airline for UK flight delays.
The budget carrier’s departure from UK airports averaged 31 minutes and 36 seconds late last year, according to analysis of CAA data.
This meant that Wizz Air was ranked the least punctual airline for UK flights for three years in a row, despite a reduction of almost a third compared to 2022.
Wizz Air, which sells tickets for as little as £45 to holiday destinations in Greece and Spain, said it had made ‘significant improvements’ but admitted there was ‘more work to do’.
Turkish Airlines recorded the second worst punctuality last year, with an average delay of 28 minutes and 36 seconds.
