Passengers Rage At Lack Of Social Distancing At Airport

Passengers were shocked by the lack of social distancing at Heathrow Airport in London:

Long queues of travellers pushing trolleys were seen inside the busy terminal, despite distancing guidelines still remaining in place.

The person who filmed the scenes said: ''Terminal Two entry has no social distancing. There are long queues with people bumping into each other, no system in place and no staff managing this. It is chaos with people coming out the elevators and zero instruction."

A Heathrow spokesperson said: "We are aware that some passengers are arriving several hours in advance of their flights which is not necessary and is causing some congestion issues.

"To prevent this, passengers are advised to arrive no earlier than 2 hours before a short-haul flight and 3 hours for long-haul journeys.

"Our teams are on hand to support where possible, but we recognise that there are points in the journey where social distancing is not always possible. That is why face coverings are mandatory in terminals, as they help to reduce the risk of transmission at the airport."

Airport bosses say staff are also keeping up regular cleaning, saying: "We are stopping at nothing to keep the airport spotless and our team of cleaners is working around the clock to sanitise our common areas and toilets. We are using fogging techniques on seats and trollies and we have modified the air conditioning to eradicate polluted air.

"There are over 600 hand sanitiser dispensers across Heathrow which we fill regularly and we have marked on the maps for you."

Thermal screening equipment is currently being trialled at Heathrow inside Terminal 2's immigration hall to detect elevated temperatures of arriving passengers.

The technology uses camera detection systems capable of monitoring the temperatures of multiple people moving through the airport.

Passengers will be alerted to the trials through signage placed at the immigration hall, but will otherwise see no visible change to their arrivals journey as no other screening methods will be needed. No personal data will be stored or shared through these trials.

Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye said: "We welcome the Secretary of State for Transport's 'air bridge' proposals to allow trade to continue between destinations with low COVID-19 risks.

"To unlock the full benefits of aviation for the economy, a Common International Standard for health screening must be agreed by the global authorities - and the technology we are trialling now could be a part of this solution.

"As one of the world's great trading nations, the UK should take a lead in setting a global plan to reopen borders, when it is safe to do so. This will help protect millions of British jobs that rely on aviation, but are currently at risk."