A man wants to warn others after he and his wife missed their first trip abroad since before the pandemic when he was stopped from boarding his flight.
Dr Bob Banks was due to give a talk in Munich this week after which he planned to travel onto Milan with his wife Gillian for a holiday. But when they prepared to board their KLM flight on Friday, Swissport staff at the departure gate at Newcastle Airport said Dr Banks' passport was invalid and wouldn't let him board the plane.
The apparent confusion centres around new rules introduced this year about travel to the Schengen area - made up of the countries now in the EU. Dr Banks, 74, who lives in Durham, told Chronicle Live : "This as much a warning to other people than just about how upset and frustrated we've been."
