Ryanair has warned that passengers flying through Malaga Airport this summer could face long queues and missed flights because of the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES).
The airline says travellers should not be used as ‘guinea pigs’ for what it described as a ‘half-baked’ rollout of the scheme.
The EES requires non-EU travellers to have their fingerprints and facial image recorded when entering and leaving the Schengen Area.
The warning comes as the European Commission has called an emergency meeting with airlines and airports next Tuesday following growing concern over lengthy delays at border controls.
Malaga among seven most at risk, claims Ryanair
Ryanair identified Malaga Airport as one of seven already experiencing major disruption, warning that congestion is expected to worsen as peak holiday season gets underway.
The airline also named Alicante, Palma and Tenerife South in Spain, along with Milan Bergamo, Krakow and Paris Beauvais, as airports where passengers could face significant delays.
Ryanair chief operating officer Neal McMahon said the current infrastructure is ‘not ready to manage the high passenger volumes expected’ over the coming weeks.
‘It is clear that the Entry/Exit System is still not ready for peak summer volumes,’ he said.
‘Passengers and families should not be used as guinea pigs for a half-baked passport control system that risks creating long queues, missed flights and unnecessary stress at airports this summer.’
The warning follows a joint appeal from Airlines for Europe (A4E), Airports Council International Europe (ACI Europe) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which have asked the European Commission to temporarily suspend the new border checks during the busiest summer months.
The organisations argue that many airports do not yet have the capacity to process passengers quickly enough and have warned that staff are facing increasing abuse as queues grow.
In a letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the groups said the EES had reached a ‘critical point’ and called for ‘immediate intervention before the situation deteriorates further’.
They want EU countries to be allowed to suspend the system whenever passenger numbers exceed the operational capacity of border control facilities, at least throughout July and August.
Some industry bodies are also reportedly pushing for full implementation to be delayed until summer 2027.
Reports of lengthy border queues have already emerged across Europe.
The chief executive of Berlin Airport, Aletta von Massenbach, said non-EU passengers are already facing waits of up to two hours, describing the situation as ‘not bearable over the summer’.
