Between 31 March and 9 April 2023, industrial action is expected to take place by Unite members employed by Heathrow Airport, including Terminal 5 and campus security guards.
Heathrow has confirmed the airport will remain open and operational but there will be a knock-on impact across the airport if the strike goes ahead, and customers may experience longer wait times at Terminal 3 Security. our priority is to ensure that if they’re travelling on a strike day, that they can complete their travel plans as smoothly as possible.
We continue to work with Heathrow to understand the impact on customers at our home in Terminal 3 during this popular Easter holiday travel window.
Between 31 March and 2 April, we expect the airport to be particularly busy, with longer wait times at Security. To support existing customers with departing flights on these days, we’ve limited new ticket sales and introduced a flexible policy which enables customers to rebook their itinerary dates free of charge, if they’d prefer to avoid the busiest strike days. We recommend that all customers departing on a strike day check their flight status in advance, arrive no more than three hours before departure and come extra-prepared for Security checks.
The full policy can be found here.
Preparing for travel
To uphold the best possible experience for everyone during the strike action, customers should ensure they follow the below steps:
- Check flight status via the homepage before setting off to the airport.
- Arrive no more than three hours before departure. That should generally be plenty of time to drop bags and clear airport checks, depending on the size of the group.
- Check hand luggage rules and consider minimising what they bring through Security in order to avoid unnecessary delays at Security search. They must not have liquids, creams, gels, pastes and aerosols over 100ml or sharp items or tools. Large electronic devices like laptops need to be in a separate tray. By being extra-prepared for Security they’ll help keep everyone moving.
- Prepare travel documents in advance, including Covid-19 documents if their destination requires them. Checking in online in the 24 hours before departure will simplify things at the airport.
Our teams will be on-hand in the terminal to support your customers journey and look forward to welcoming them onboard. Heathrow Airport FAQ can also be found here.