More misery and long queues for travellers after 150 flights cancelled from Gatwick and Heathrow

Passengers are once again facing cancellations, delays and lengthy queues as the chaos hitting the travel industry continues.

EasyJet cancelled at least 31 flights from Gatwick, to destinations such as Bologna, Barcelona, Prague, Krakow and Edinburgh.

Some passengers boarded planes before being told their flights were cancelled.

Ramona and Ibru from Brighton were headed to Egypt for six days on their first holiday in three years, but had to disembark the aircraft when their flight was axed.

"We're looking at different airports but there's nothing there," they told ITV News. "It's not promising."

• Ramona and Ibru say they are 'gutted' after their flight to Egypt was cancelled

Other travellers had flights delayed as schedules were changed at the last minute.

One woman, whose flight to Turkey was delayed, commented: "We're not too bothered about the two hours, because we were expecting it. We just don't want it to be any longer."

"We are worried about it being cancelled, I don't think we'd be normal if we weren't."

There have been problems with baggage handling too.

One easyJet passenger said they had to wait for two hours and 40 minutes to receive their luggage after landing at Gatwick Airport shortly before 3am, commenting this was "simply not good enough".

EasyJet say they are "truly disheartened" with the situation, adding: "Cancelling a flight is always our last resort as we understand the inconvenience this causes."

Meanwhile, British Airways axed 124 short-haul flights at Heathrow, but the airline says passengers were given advance notice.

Airline passengers have been hit by disruption for several months, with the situation worsening this week due to the rise in demand sparked by the half-term school holiday and the four-day Platinum Jubilee weekend.

The aviation industry is suffering from staff shortages after letting thousands of people go during the coronavirus pandemic.

Airlines and airports repeatedly called for sector-specific financial support during the Covid-19 crisis as Government travel restrictions suppressed demand.

They are now struggling to recruit new workers and have their security checks processed.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps claimed travel firms have "seriously oversold flights and holidays relative to their capacity to deliver".

He went on: "This must not happen again and all efforts should be directed at there being no repeat of this over the summer."

Mr Shapps has demanded a meeting with airports, airlines and ground handlers to "find out what's gone wrong and how they are planning to end the current run of cancellations and delays".

Deputy prime minister Dominic Raab accused airlines of a "lack of preparation" ahead of the holiday surge.

Cancelled flights at Gatwick and across the south of England create additional pressure for ports like Dover, which are already stretched.

Toby Howe, from the Kent Resilience Forum, explains: "We found that last Sunday down at the Port of Dover, where due to a lot of cancelations of flights, tourists have got bookings over in Europe and are still wanting to get there, so they booked with the ferries.

"And so there was a sudden influx of an increase of traffic, which caused one of the issues down in Dover."

He says ports like Dover are already experiencing delays because of additional checks due to Brexit.

"Since we've left the EU really there are more checks at the ports. So even just having to now look at your passport, having to stamp your passport, that takes enough time," says Toby.

"So when you've got that quantity of traffic, it just adds to those delays. So we're still trying to really get to grips with what that overall impact is.

Toby Howe says the area desperately needs more resources from central Government.

"Kent police are really suffering from [a lack of] resource, so they need no funding to increase the officers. Likewise, National Highways, likewise KCC. So we're all under great pressure anyway at the best of times.

"But to get that resource in place, to be able to manage the whole of the Kent network, we need more support from national government."

• Toby Howe from the Kent Resilience Forum

The Liberal Democrats have called for the Army to be deployed to ease queues at airports and ports, and on roads.

The party's transport spokesperson Sarah Olney said: "The chaotic scenes at airports up and down the country have been nothing short of a complete disaster.

"We need drastic action now to tackle this travel carnage and break the logjam.

"That's why drafting Britain's best and brightest logistics minds from the Army to get things moving again is a no-brainer."

Shadow levelling up, housing and communities secretary Lisa Nandy said: "Any government worth its salt would be moving heaven and earth to stop the misery and the chaos" unfolding at airports.

She said: "The Government was warned all the way through the pandemic that the loss of skilled staff was going to create problems.

"We need a proper post-Covid plan to get the industry back on its feet and get things moving again, including filling recruitment shortages that have emerged ."