If you’re planning to fly home this summer, you might want to set that alarm a little earlier than usual. A lot earlier, actually.
Wizz Air CEO Yvonne Moynihan has urged UK holidaymakers to arrive at the airport at least three hours before their return or connecting flight, after a string of passengers reported missing their planes entirely due to long queues at security and check-in.
It’s a striking warning from the head of one of Europe’s busiest budget carriers. Most of us have grown up with the two-hour rule drilled into us, but Moynihan is saying that’s simply not cutting it anymore at many airports this season.
“Some passengers have reported missing return or connecting flights home due to queues,” Moynihan said, making clear this isn’t a hypothetical worry but something that’s already happening to real travellers.
The issue is particularly acute at busier European hubs, where summer volumes are pushing ground staff and security lanes to their limits. Airports that run smoothly in October can become a completely different beast in July and August.
For families travelling with young children, or anyone who needs a bit of extra time through security, three hours is arguably the sensible baseline anyway. But even solo travellers with hand luggage only are being caught out.
The advice also applies to connecting flights, where the margins are even tighter. Miss a connection and you’re not just delayed; you could be stranded overnight waiting for the next available seat, footing the bill for a hotel yourself if the delay is deemed outside the airline’s control.
Travel insurance is worth double-checking before you go, specifically whether your policy covers missed connections due to airport congestion rather than flight cancellations.
Wizz Air operates routes from a number of UK airports including Luton, Gatwick, and Birmingham, serving popular summer destinations across Southern Europe and beyond.
It’s a slightly gloomy reality check ahead of what should be a straightforward getaway. Whether airports will invest in the infrastructure needed to fix this before next summer, though, is a very different question.
