Spain lets families skip biometric queues

Spain’s airport operator Aena is letting families with young children and passengers with disabilities skip biometric Entry/Exit System queues when waits pass 25 minutes. (ftnnews.com) (majorcadailybulletin.com) The rule applies at Spanish airports using the European Union’s new Entry/Exit System, which records fingerprints and facial data for many non-European Union travelers instead of relying only on passport stamps. (ftnnews.com) (independent.co.uk) Aena’s instruction is to move those passengers to traditional passport control if the wait to use biometric machines exceeds 25 minutes. Reports said the measure was being used at airports including Madrid-Barajas, Málaga, Alicante, Barcelona-El Prat and Palma. (ftnnews.com) (msn.com) The change came after long lines at Spanish airports in the first weeks of full EES use. Majorca Daily Bulletin reported queues of up to three hours for some non-European Union passengers, especially travelers from the United Kingdom. (majorcadailybulletin.com) (visahq.com) FTN News cited one British family who missed a flight and paid £1,000 after delays in Spain, a case that turned the queue problem into a consumer issue for airlines and holiday companies. (ftnnews.com) Spain has not suspended the Entry/Exit System outright. Instead, Aena has kept the biometric process running while carving out a pressure-release valve for vulnerable passengers during the worst bottlenecks. (majorcadailybulletin.com) (canarianweekly.com) Greece chose a different response. Jet2 said Greek authorities suspended biometric checks for UK holidaymakers under EES, and the airline urged other countries to follow that approach. (app.jet2.com) (majorcadailybulletin.com) The dispute is over how to keep borders moving while the new database beds in before the summer travel peak. For now, Spain is betting that a 25-minute cutoff can stop the worst missed-flight cases without abandoning the system. (ftnnews.com) (app.jet2.com)