Chaos hits UK airport as passengers 'in tears' due to monster security queues

The madness left tourists stranded in the UK (Stock)(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Travellers flying from London Stansted faced a night of chaos after they were hit with queues lasting more than two hours to get through security.

The airport madness left hundreds of travellers set to miss their flights, one distraught passenger was spotted in tears due to the delays meaning he would most likely miss a wedding he was scheduled to attend.

The build up left tourists stuck in London and scrambling to find last minute accommodation due to disrupting their trips back home. The Metro reports only two of the 11 security scanners were used to check passengers on the night, leading to the massive queues.

Travellers at the scene were told there wasn't enough staff to deal with the backlog of people. One person, who was due to travel on a 10pm flight to Dublin, told the Metro there was a "total lack of communication."

The passenger said: "There's a total lack of staff. There are women with babies in buggies and prams who don't know if they're going to have to sleep in the airport tonight. People are here in the queue having to watch FlightRadar to see if their flight has taken off, it's just a total lack of communication."

One man was reportedly in tears and said they were going to miss a wedding in Denmark due to the lengthy security queues. A worker on the ground was heard telling customers: "We are just as furious as you are."

The final flight to depart from London Stansted was the 10:30pm flight for Imir, Turkey. However it is unclear how many people actually made it on to plane before it departed.

A spokesperson for Stansted Airport has said: "Security queue times were longer than would normally be expected for a period this evening due to high passenger numbers.

"Our teams worked hard to support passengers and get them safely through security as soon as possible. We thank passengers for their patience and apologise for any inconvenience."

Earlier this week strikes by the ABM union workers at the airport were called off to allow members to vote on an improved pay offer. Alongside this, more than 100 members of the Unite union - who take care of passengers with disabilities at the London airport - were set to walk out from today until Monday 20 April due to a pay dispute.

The strike action has been postponed after negotiations between the union, the workers employer and conciliatory service Acas until a new resolution offer has been put forward.

Unite regional officer Steve Edwards said: "After a new offer has been put forward to members, we have decided to stop strike action to allow them to have their say."