BRITISH travelers have been asked not to bring luggage to avoid long queues at UK airports, as holidaymakers have faced long wait times.
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The union GMB, which represents some travel workers, said passengers should not take bags to exit the queue.
Andy Prendergast, the GMB union's national secretary, told Sky News: "If people can apply online and not pick up bags, that will limit the disruption.
"It's not a magic bullet, but it's one less thing to worry about and it reduces the chances of something going wrong."
Meanwhile, Grant Shapps has told the airline industry that visa rules cannot be relaxed to employ more foreign workers.
Travel expert and PC Authority CEO, Paul Charles, says passengers should consider "packing light".
However, John Irving, chief executive of Liverpool airport, told BBC Radio 4: "Everyone needs to make their own decisions."
Passengers with a lot of hand luggage also mean that security queues are under more pressure.
Heathrow and Gatwick airports said they had no plans to change current baggage advice for passengers.
The airline industry continues to grapple with extreme staff shortages following the pandemic.
Aviation leaders have asked the Government to relax rules on special immigrant visas to ease the pressure.
According to the BBC, the Government has rejected an offer to allow EU workers to enter the UK to help during the peak summer travel period.
Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2, told the BBC: "Brexit has taken hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people out of the job market and that's certainly had an impact."
Problems could continue into the summer if the industry is unable to recruit the required number of workers by July.
More than 30,000 airline employees have been laid off during the pandemic and some have found work in other industries.
Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, said: "We are grateful to airlines and operators for continuing to provide good service despite current pressures and we realize that not all All operators are affected in the same way.
“I also understand the human resource stresses in the aviation sector but cannot excuse poor planning and overbooking of flights they cannot accommodate.
“Companies that have seen the most disruptions need to learn from those who have run services smoothly.
“We will continue to monitor the situation closely to ensure consumers are not harmed by any further disruptions.”
Passengers at Manchester Airport have reported long queues on social media although the chaos appears to have eased at many other UK airports.
easyJet and British Airways have also canceled flights with most of their pre-informed passengers.
TUI has said its flights are now operating as normal after canceling six flights a day from Manchester Airport in June.
Britons are entitled to take another flight on their intended travel date if another flight is available, even if the flight is from a rival airline.
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