Greece’s Rhodes International Airport was the site of chaos over the weekend as crowds of travelers complained of long lines that were compounded by a lack of adequate air conditioning and communication from staff.
Numerous social media posts showed exceptionally long lines forming as passengers appeared to grow more and more impatient with the delays.
While a majority of travelers were seen wearing face masks, the number of waiting passengers made social distancing all but impossible.
Witnesses reported that multiple fights broke out and blamed travel company TUI, British low-cost carrier Jet2 and others for the delays and overcrowding.
One traveler claimed the chaos was aided by staff calling five flights for departure at the same time at one point.
https://twitter.com/davidjvassallo/status/1320003171679391744?ref_src=twsrc^tfw” rel=”nofollow
“Never seen an airport run so badly, saw about four or five fights breakout,” passenger Chris Smith wrote in a Twitter post. “We all had to queue for two hours for passport control, everyone was stressed.”
https://twitter.com/ChrisSmith521/status/1320099721038434305?ref_src=twsrc^tfw” rel=”nofollow
Lauren Rammell of British girl group Four of Diamonds was left speechless by her experience, tweeting “I actually have no words for the scenes at Rhodes airport this evening…”
https://twitter.com/LaurenRammell/status/1320025028453388288?ref_src=twsrc^tfw” rel=”nofollow
TUI attributed the extraordinary scene in Rhodes to an “increased volume of flights by a number of airlines.”
“We’re sorry for the disruption that our customers have experienced at Rhodes airport today,” a spokesperson for TUI said in a statement via The Daily Mail. “We did inform customers in advance that the airport was going to be busy due to the increased volume of flights by a number of airlines and they were to proceed to passport control as soon as they had checked in. We would like to thank them for their patience and understanding.”
If summer travel feels more expensive and a little more stressful lately… you’re not imagining…
When it comes to Mother's Day, it's easy to reach for the usual gifts, but…
Spring is here, and backyards and closets aren’t the only things that need a seasonal…
Spirit Airlines shutting down is the kind of travel news that hits fast, hard, and…
JetBlue Airways is under scrutiny after a deleted social media post suggested to a customer…
Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines transitioned to a shared passenger service system on April 22.…