British Airways’ CEO Alex Cruz Calls Heathrow’s Passport Waiting Times a “Farce”

Alex Cruz, BA’s chief executive, has taken London’s Heathrow Airport to task over the lengthy waiting times experienced by non-EEA nationals. In a letter published in The Times on Monday, Cruz called the situation at LHR a “farce” and asked the UK’s Home Secretary to step in to resolve the problem.

Alex Cruz, British Airways‘ chief executive, has criticized the lengthy passport lines at London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR), Reuters reports. His comments were made in a letter to The Times, which was published on Monday.

He stated that the current situation at LHR is not acceptable and must improve, especially in the light of Britain’s imminent exit from the European Union (EU). In his letter, Cruz added that the lines and wait times at LHR are noticeably longer than those experienced at other airports around the world.

According to current statistics as released by the Airports Council International, LHR is Europe’s busiest airport in terms of passenger numbers.

He was also quick to note that these two-hour long lines have become normalized for arriving passengers who are not citizens of a European Economic Area (EEA) member state. Cruz added that the current target for waiting times for those coming from outside of the EEA is just 45 minutes.

Cruz also implored Sajid Javid, the UK’s Home Secretary, to do everything in his power to swiftly halt what Cruz was quoted by Reuters as calling “this border farce”.

Commenting on the situation at LHR as a whole, Cruz wrote, “What kind of message does this send, as we try to build links outside the EU?”.

Javid has not offered comment, but according to The Telegraph, Cruz’s letter was published amid, “…reports that Britain was considering setting up designated lanes for British passport holders at UK airports after Britain leaves the EU on March 29 next year.”

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