Anxious holidaymakers have piled into UK airports several hours early amid flight cancellations and queue chaos.
Startling footage of huge waiting lines and last minute cancellation announcements have surfaced in the last week, as airlines and airports appear to be struggling to meet summer demand.
Worried passengers at Manchester Airport filled the waiting lounge as some admitted they were more than three hours early for their flight, having been spooked by the scenes and stories on social media.
But despite making such preparations, Ernest Murray, 50, said his flight to Paris with his family had been cancelled only after they had passed through airport security.
The data scientist from Leeds, West Yorkshire, said: "It wasn't until we got through security that we even found out that the flight had been cancelled.
"They're saying they can refund the flight there but not the flight back and they're saying they can get us on a flight to Paris from London but we would have to catch the returning flight back to Manchester.
"We can stay with friends in London but if we drive down there and leave the car in London we have no way of getting home when we land back in Manchester.
"The problem is there's no advanced warning or even a text to tell you that it's cancelled, you have to get through security before you find out.
"I was expecting maybe a delay after reading the news about the chaos at UK airports but not this."
For another group, it was their second time in Manchester Airport in under a week, after their Tui package holiday to Kos, Greece was ripped from underneath them as they stood to board the plane.
Lucy Hollister, 24, had been one of 11 friends and family who had booked the getaway to lift their spirits after the death of her stepdad.
But after a 7-hour delay on Saturday, as the estate agent stood waiting to board the plane, she explained how police had sent passengers home claiming there was "no pilot" to fly the craft.
Lucy, from Sale, Manchester said: "We were in the airport for more than 11 hours in total.
"We were finally stood at the gate, waiting to get on, and they just announced that the flight was cancelled and there was no pilot available to fly the plane.
"No one from Tui even said anything to us, we didn't even get an apology, and when we called the customer call line you couldn't get through.
"The whole time the departure board just said the word 'Relax' next to our flight which just made it even more frustrating.
"After wasting the day in the airport we had to turn back round and leave through the arrivals section but there were only two people checking through 230 passengers.
"They were asking us if we had a nice holiday and their systems weren't working because the computer classed us as having left the UK but never having arrived in Greece, so we were just in this digital no-man's-land."
The hopeful group had returned with fresh plans for a five day break in Barcelona but were met with a 45 minute wait to get through security as only baggage check lanes were open.
Passengers who had paid a £5 upgrade to go through 'fast track' saw that time cut in half, but ultimately everyone arrived at the same packed-out waiting lounge, with board faces sat on chairs or the floor.
Damian Morgan, 53, from Stockport, Manchester, said: "I think the reason it's quite busy is because most people have arrived a few hours early before their flight to avoid the rush.
"We haven't flown for years, it's our first family holiday since before Covid so we are hoping for smooth sailing."
