‘Gatwick hell’ eases as airport queues speed up

Date added: 24 November, 2010

Regular passengers say they have been astonished by the banishing of "Gatwick
hell" at an airport once notorious for long queues and surly staff.

Gatwick, which handles about 32 million passengers a year, was sold by Spanish-owned BAA to the Global Infrastructure Partners investment
fund on 4 December last year.

Since the £1.5 billion takeover, complaints about security queues have fallen
by 70 per cent and positive feedback from passengers has doubled.

The airport has also hit its targets for the time it takes to clear security
— a wait of five minutes or less for 95 per cent of passengers — every month for
a year.

And under the government regime set up to fine airports for delays it is now
earning bonuses.

Aviation consultant Chris Tarry, who flies from Gatwick at least once a month,
said: "There has been a material improvement not just in terms of waiting time
but also it’s just a much more pleasant experience. Now there are staff who will
engage with you and chat with you. It’s not the ordeal it once was."

The airport’s new owners promised £1 billion of improvements to its two ageing
terminals and better treatment of passengers. Changes to date include intensive
"politeness training" for all Gatwick’s 1,600 frontline staff, a new dedicated
service for families with young children, and fast-track security lanes.

The company that ran the buggy service for elderly or disabled passengers who
cannot walk to their gates was sacked resulting in a halving of complaints.

Gatwick has also started to put pressure on airlines by publishing "name and
shame" league tables of baggage handling delays.

Peter Hall, chairman of Gatwick’s independent Passenger Advisory Group, said
GIP’s management were "a joy to work with" after four decades of BAA ownership
when the airport was permanently in the shadow of Heathrow. "Gatwick’s gone from
a four out of 10 to about eight and a half," he said.

Stewart Wingate, chief executive officer of Gatwick Airport Ltd, said: "I’m pleased
with the progress we’re making but there’s still a lot to do."

A spokesman for BAA said many of the investment projects at Gatwick had been
inherited from its previous ownership.

Posted: Wednesday, November 24th, 2010. Filed in News about Airports.