A family faced an 11-hour ordeal at Charles de Gaulle airport on April 29, 2026, due to delays linked to the new EU border biometric checks. David Newton and his family arrived three hours before their flight but ended up stranded in departures for an astonishing amount of time.
The chaos began when they joined a queue for the Entry/Exit System (EES) checks. They were required to provide fingerprints and facial photos as mandated by EU rules for non-EU nationals. However, only about a third of the 15 booths were staffed, leading to severe delays.
After five hours in line, David described the scene as “mayhem,” with thousands of passengers also waiting anxiously. EES kiosks at major hubs in France were not operational due to technical issues—an unfortunate sign of the system’s troubled rollout.
By the time they reached passport control, their flight had already taken off. They spent two additional hours checking in their luggage again. David noted that people around him were visibly distressed, with some crying and pleading that they would miss their flights.
As a result of these delays, Greece has temporarily suspended biometric checks for British nationals amid growing queues. ACI Europe has warned that travelers can expect delays of up to three hours during peak travel periods.
The European Commission asserts that the EES system has been functioning well in most member states since its launch on April 10, 2026. Yet, as this incident illustrates, significant issues persist where implementation is concerned.
Passengers are currently being processed manually—a process taking approximately five minutes per person—due to these ongoing challenges. The exact duration of the technical problems affecting EES kiosks remains unclear, raising questions about how long these disruptions will last.