ARLANDA / OSLO (VG) This weekend, the police had to move to Arlanda in Sweden to calm the crowds. Now there are long queues at the airport again.
Just updated
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At Arlanda Airport in Stockholm, there are large crowds on Monday afternoon.
At terminal 5, where the planes to Norway, among other places, use to go, the queue towards the security checkpoint is around one kilometer long.
– Earlier today, the queue stretched down the conveyor belt and out towards terminal four, says an employee at the airport to VG’s team on site.
People are stressed, tired and desperate, and many do not catch their planes. The summer holiday plans are in danger of being canceled for several of those present.
The airport employee explains to VG that the main reason for the pressure is that many travelers have arrived more than three hours before departure.
The press officer at Arlanda Airport confirms to VG that there have been periods with longer queues at Arlanda on Monday.
Also this weekend there was chaos at Arlanda. The road to terminal 5 was closed and did not reopen until after several hours.
The police had to move out to calm and guide the crowds.
– The staff had zero control, said one of the passengers who barely made it to his plane Expressen.
Can be long queues this summer
Many people travel via Arlanda now, both because it is summer, but also because the corona pandemic does not prevent travel.
– There have been some periods with longer queues, we can confirm that. This can continue through the summer when there are many who travel, says press officer Ellen Laurin to VG.
Arlanda is working intensely to recruit new employees after two years of pandemic. But it is challenging and many airports are in the same situation, says Laurin.
– Do you know if anyone has lost the plane due to a queue?
– The information we have is that not many have lost their plane. The vast majority come along, says Laurin.
When VG talks to Laurin just before 2 pm, there is normal operation at Arlanda. But the queues are expected to be longer in the morning, afternoon and on weekends.
–Expecting delays this summer
There has been chaos at several European airports recently.
The aviation industry is struggling with staff shortages after thousands of employees lost their jobs during the pandemic and have not returned.
As many as two out of three airports in Europe state that they expect more delays than usual this summer.
Of course, this will also have consequences in Norway.
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