What impact did the outage have on travellers at UK airports?

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Outage Caused Widespread Disruption and Long Queues at UK Airports

The technical outage affecting Border Force systems led to significant disruptions for travellers across the UK, resulting in lengthy queues and chaotic scenes at multiple airports. Border control systems are now operational, and authorities have confirmed that border security was not compromised, with no indication of malicious cyber activity.
Extensive Queues and Manual Processing

Long queues formed at British airports on Tuesday night as a nationwide technical issue impacted the Border Force's systems. Travellers reported that border officials were resorting to manually processing passports due to the e-gates being non-functional. This manual processing contributed to extended waiting times for passengers attempting to enter the country.
Major Airports Affected

Several of the UK's busiest airports experienced the disruptions, including Heathrow, London Stansted, London Gatwick, Manchester, and Edinburgh. These airports confirmed awareness of the nationwide problem and worked with Border Force officials to address the situation. Heathrow Airport has since confirmed that all its border control systems are operating as usual.
Traveller Experiences and Apologies

Passengers described scenes of chaos, with e-gates showing blank screens. One traveller, Sam Morter, recounted experiencing approximately 90 minutes of delay at Heathrow Airport due to the issue. Videos circulating on social media platforms depicted extensive queues at passport control desks. The Home Office issued an apology to all passengers for the inconvenience caused by the outage.
Precedent of System Failures

This is not the first instance of significant disruption to automated border systems. The automated border gate system experienced a similar crash in May 2023, which also led to long queues and delays for travellers. This recurring issue highlights ongoing challenges with the reliability of the automated border control infrastructure.

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What impact did the outage have on travellers at UK airports?

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