Man with cancer misses holiday in airport queue

Robert James had been due to fly to Spain as a break between cancer treatments

A man with prostate cancer said he missed his flight and was forced to abandon his holiday after queueing for more than two-and-a-half hours to get through airport security.

Robert James, 83, was due to fly with his wife from Birmingham Airport to Murcia in Spain with Ryanair at 15:50 BST on Monday.

Despite arriving at the airport at 12:50 and joining the line 10 minutes later, they did not clear security until 15:40, said Mr James, from Bridgnorth, Shropshire.

An airport spokesperson said they were sorry to hear about his experience and they were awaiting further details to investigate.

Ryanair apologised for the inconvenience caused, but said the security delays were beyond the airline's control.

Mr James said: "The amount of people on that ground floor was ridiculous, there were thousands of us just trying to get through security.

"I’ve got prostate cancer and I don’t think standing for two-and-a-half, three hours, shuffling along, is probably not very good for my health."

The break was partly intended to provide respite between Mr James's cancer treatments.

People have been posting pictures of queues at Birmingham Airport online

He described airport workers advising travellers in the queue they would be taken up to the gate if their departure time was called, but said he did not hear his flight called.

"It was hot, they don’t bring bottles of water for you," he added.

The airport has come under fire in recent weeks, with passengers reporting large queues as building works are carried out, many of them saying they had lost hundreds of pounds due to missing flights.

Last week, the airport said a new security area being built meant the airport was a "working building site", but also faced renewed criticism after describing the work as "an exciting time".

"Security is being totally revamped, I do understand that," Mr James said.

"[But] either they should have closed the airport whilst they’re doing this work or reduced the number of flights."

Diane James said she and her husband "felt sick" with frustration

By the time Mr James and wife Diana, 77, got to the departure lounge, the gate for their flight had closed and they were not allowed to board.

Mrs James said the pair "felt sick" with frustration.

"The maddening thing about being at the gate and not being allowed through is we had to wait for our case to be taken off, in which time we could have got on the plane," she said.

The missed flight cost the pair £456 and they have also lost €800 (£687) on a hotel booked for five nights in Mojacar, Spain.

Mr James said his insurers referred him to Ryanair to seek compensation but he was finding it difficult to navigate online links.

'Reach out'

A Birmingham Airport spokesperson said they were in touch with the couple.

The spokesperson added: "We are sorry to hear about Robert and his family’s experience at Birmingham Airport.

"We can confirm that our customer support team have received Robert’s initial contact form and have already reached out."

Mr James added the hotel was being "understanding" and he hoped to be credited with the lost amount.

A Ryanair spokesperson said all passengers travelling to the airport on 6 May had been advised to arrive at least three hours before their departure time.

"Due to security delays at Birmingham Airport, a small number of passengers missed this flight to Murcia," they added.

"We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused as a result of these security delays at Birmingham Airport, which were are entirely beyond airlines’ control."