Easter travel warning: Storm Nelson brings bank holiday chaos as planes can’t land and flooding cancels trains

Drivers are being warned of chaos on roads over the Easter weekend, with as many as 18.5 million car trips planned at the start of school holidays.

Those setting out on their journeys are likely to encounter delays from Thursday 28 March, when children break up at the end of term, into Good Friday, with one specialist warning that it could be “carmageddon” for those making their getaways.

The overall travel picture should not be as bad as in 2023, when the Easter weekend coincided with strikes that led to the cancellation and delays of dozens of flights and widespread rail engineering work.

Millions of Britons are barred from entering the EU by post-Brexit passport rules that are set to cause chaos over the Easter holidays.

With the getaway starting in earnest on Thursday, an estimated 2.4 million travellers have documents that can’t be used for trips to the EU because of the change in expiry requirements.

Since Brexit, British passports must have an issue date less than 10 years old on the day of departure to the EU, and must have at least three months left before their expiry date on the intended day of return. But millions of passports issued prior to September 2018 have longer validity periods.

The great Easter getaway could see travellers caught up in delays by road, ferry, rail and air. In a normal year there would be a gap between most schools breaking up and the long weekend. But with Easter falling so early the two are combined. Term is ending at many schools on Thursday 28 March, putting extra pressure on transportation.

At least three major UK airports – Bristol, Newcastle and Edinburgh – have told The Independent this will be their busiest Easter ever. Some airlines are predicting record numbers for the spell between Good Friday and Easter Monday. Geneva routes will be extremely busy with winter sports fans, while Malaga, Alicante, Faro and Tenerife are the leading spring sunshine holiday destinations.

Turkey, Dubai and the Canary Islands are among the most popular destinations amid wet and windy weather forecast for the UK, although trips to Dublin are also in demand.

Travel trade organisation Abta said airports are reporting “strong numbers”, with 175,000 due to leave from Stansted, 105,000 from Luton, 160,000 from Manchester, 79,000 from Birmingham, and 89,000 from Edinburgh between Friday and Monday.

The match is due to kick off at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday 30 March at 8pm GMT.

The kick off time is just two minutes before the last train is scheduled to depart London St Pancras for Manchester Piccadilly. London Euston is not in service this weekend because of engineering works between London and Milton Keynes.

More than 600 Border Force officers deployed at Heathrow airport will walk out for four days from 11 April – potentially causing chaos as families return from Easter holidays.

The strike by members of the PCS union has been timed to hit the busiest days for arrival at the UK’s biggest airport.

In a ballot that closed last week, PCS members who carry out immigration controls and passport checks at Heathrow airport voted by nine to one to walk out over a new roster and imposed changes to shift patterns.

The union says the changes could see as many as 250 staff losing their jobs.

The PCS general secretary, Fran Heathcote, said: “Ministers have 14 days to withdraw these unfair and unnecessary proposals or our members at Heathrow will take strike action.

“Consultation with staff has been a farce, with our members having little or no choice about the new arrangements.

“Ripping up flexible working arrangements is no way to treat staff especially, as the government says, their work is critical to our nation’s security.

“Some members are heart-broken that the Border Force has become ‘unprofessional and inhumane’.

“If the government is serious about border security, it should look at Border Force officers’ job security, look after its staff, scrap the changes and work with us to protect jobs and working conditions.”

The Independent has asked the Home Office for a response

Airports are packed with eager holidaymakers today as planes face difficulty landing amid extreme winds and heavy rain.

Drivers, rail passengers and now jet-setters are facing travel chaos as many attempt to get their Easter weekend started.

Two million holidaymakers are set to take flight over the weekend, with one airport bracing for “record-breaking” passenger numbers.

Turkey, Dubai and the Canary Islands are among the most popular destinations amid wet and windy weather forecast for the UK, although trips to Dublin are also in demand.

Travel trade organisation Abta said airports are reporting “strong numbers”, with 175,000 due to leave from Stansted, 105,000 from Luton, 160,000 from Manchester, 79,000 from Birmingham, and 89,000 from Edinburgh between Friday and Monday.

Manchester Airport managing director Chris Woodroofe said: ‘It’s exciting that record numbers of people will be taking off from here this Easter: 320,000 people will travel (through the airport) over the bank holiday weekend – that’s up 7 per cent on April 2023.’

It comes as dramatic footage showed an easyJet flight from Faro abort a landing at Gatwick Airport in heavy rain and strong winds at around 12:30pm.

The Airbus A320 wobbles from side to side before pulling up again to avoid disaster. It landed ten minutes later successfully.

Rail passengers hoping to travel between London Paddington, the West of England and South Wales face an Easter full of problems.

The main line from Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads is blocked because of flooding.

Passengers are being told by GWR: “Network Rail advise that due to flooding at Christian Malford, only one line is currently available between Swindon and Chippenham, meaning trains will have to ‘take it in turns’ to use the one available track.

“This will cause delays on the route between London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads via Swindon, Chippenham and Bath Spa.”

On Sunday, the main line west of the capital will be disrupted in the morning due to emergency engineering works to sets of points.

Passengers are warned: “Emergency engineering works will affect services between London Paddington and Reading this Sunday. Customers are advised not to travel until midday.

“Repairs need to be undertaken to sets of points over Saturday night and Sunday morning to prevent further disruption affecting more passengers after the weekend.

“Trains will continue to operate between Reading and Bristol, South Wales, and Devon and Cornwall. However, there may be short-notice changes and cancellations, and customers are advised to check journeys beforehand.

“We’re very sorry for any inconvenience caused. Ticket acceptance will be in place with South Western Railway between Waterloo and Reading, and Chiltern Railways between Marylebone and Oxford.”

People looking for a fun day out in some areas of the UK had their plans ruined today as the extreme weather forced some attractions to close.

Kew Gardens in London closed early at 3pm due to the wet and window conditions along with areas of Bushy Park and Kensington Gardens.

Dartmoor Zoo in Devon – which saw snow fall over night – also shut due to the wind alongside some National Trust sites including Needles Old Battery and Mottisfont Gardens in Hampshire

Nearly three inches of snow was recorded this morning at Sennybridge in Powys, Wales, while two inches fell overnight just north of Dartmoor.