Easter travel delays: Call to fine airlines over airport travel chaos

The air travel regulator must be given powers to fine airlines who ignore passengers' legal rights, a consumer rights group has said. Alongside more powers for the Civil Aviation Authority, Which? said lessons must be learned from the "travel shambles" over the Easter holidays. Travellers have faced long delays in recent days and weeks, with security issues causing many to miss flights. Which? called for the government to work with airlines and airports to make sure they have "resources and capacity" to meet the expected demand of summer holiday flights. The group's travel editor Rory Boland insisted "lessons should be learned from the experience and said "there can be no excuse for a repeat of these failings". He said the government must "support consumers" by giving the Civil Aviation Authority the power to fine, ramping up pressure to ensure people are given their legally required compensation for flight delays. "Airlines wouldn't be ignoring the law and their passengers' rights if the aviation regulator had some teeth," he added.<br/>