GATWICK

[SandLat650]

Gatwick - What a nightmare

Arrived into LGW NT at 0100 Sat morning, an hour and a half late. What a dump that place is. Despite being late, had to wait 15-20 mins for ground staff to arrive. Then after winding our way around tatty corridors, arrived at passport control to find it bursting at the seams. Almost an hour later, went to get the bags and had to wait a further 20 mins before they arrived. All in all it took over 2 hours to get out of the place. Welcome to Britain in 2014.

Compare that to Hong Kong where I've parked on the furthest stand from immigration, passed through the airport, onto the Airport Express and been in Central in under a hour. I've also been to 3rd world countries where the experience has been far better.

When are people with some responsibility going to admit that the Airport is either badly run, badly managed, under funded, over capacity or any one of a dozen more things that are probably also contributory factors? The only saving grace was that at 3 in the morning the M23 and M25 were quiet.

Unless people in high places take some bold decisions that put the country first and stop pandering to various minority groups that swing their votes, sadly nothing is going to happen and people forced to use this sorry excuse for an airport will see no change.

I know a lot of good people try their hardest to make things work, but the old phrase "you can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear" is very apt; some serious modernisation is needed. One thing the whole experience taught me was to avoid the place at all costs unless absolutely necessary.