End of Iris? [effective 17 September 2013]
Sep 24, 2013, 11:21 pm
#1276
Moderator: Hyatt Gold Passport & Star Alliance
Join Date: May 1998
Location: London, UK
Programs: UA-1K 3MM/HY- LT Globalist/BA-GGL/GfL
Posts: 12,074
All it does is get you in the EU/EEA queue - so there is no benefit to UK members. No special handling for this scheme.
Sep 25, 2013, 12:47 am
#1277
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Thatcham, UK or Adelaide Australia
Programs: Marriott Lifetime Plat OZ Diamond SK Diamond BA Blue
Posts: 3,323
Sep 25, 2013, 1:11 am
#1278
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
I am for one glad that Iris at T5 has been given its marching orders. It annoyed me to no end when I tried to apply for it last year -- around the time when Border Agency was given a kicking by politicians for wait times reaching 1hr+ in EU section in the run-up to Olympics -- but was told that it is no longer possible to do so. Apparently it was only supposed to remain until the end of Olympics but, like many things, decommissioning took ages.
I am not opposed to it, if they re-open registration, but this is no longer a possibility. If they shunt human-staffed desks to where Iris was and bring more e-gates, I wouldn't complain.
I am not opposed to it, if they re-open registration, but this is no longer a possibility. If they shunt human-staffed desks to where Iris was and bring more e-gates, I wouldn't complain.
There will be more e-gates at some point but the delay in that happening isn't fully assignable to IRIS.
E-gates (when functioning) will tend to back up/slow down more than IRIS (when functioning) if the experience with US APC vs US GE is anything to go by -- as the former has more open participation than the latter.
Sep 25, 2013, 1:15 am
#1279
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
The latter group of people are explicitly excluded. And I have seen no timetable that says that this will definitely change to include all such persons in the spring of 2014 .... although there is some hope that it will then as the plan is to open enrollment to a broader pool of people then.
Sep 25, 2013, 4:35 am
#1280
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: US of A
Programs: Delta Diamond, United 1K, BA Blue, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Gold, Amex Platinum
Posts: 1,775
No, I wanted them to be canned if the IRIS scheme no longer accepted registration, which was the case for more than a year before last week. If they allowed me to register and use it, I wouldn't want it canned. One problem with that is because of issues with understaffed desks and e-gates throwing a fit, more people would have been inclined to register and, once closed, Border Agency would have made even more people cheesed off to put it mildly.
Sep 25, 2013, 6:22 am
#1281
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,576
Thank you IRIS for more than six wonderful, stress free, non queuing years!
I'll miss your commands to move to the left a little and your flickering red light in your sensor as my prelude to your monotone "thank you" prior to your sliding glass gates to freedom. Gone but never forgotten
I'll miss your commands to move to the left a little and your flickering red light in your sensor as my prelude to your monotone "thank you" prior to your sliding glass gates to freedom. Gone but never forgotten
Sep 25, 2013, 3:22 pm
#1282
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Oxfordshire, UK
Programs: BAEC Silver, IHG & Accor Plat...
Posts: 734
End of Iris? [effective 17 September 2013]
I'll miss the entertainment provided by unregistered numpties who try to wave their passport at the screen, hold their hand on it for "fingerprinting", swear and curse when it doesn't let them through.... And a special place in my heart for the American lady who followed me into the booth one morning, didn't want to leave when I explained she couldn't come through with me, and then ( the cherry on the cake as I am not from the UK) made a point of telling me "how rude you English are!" 
Sep 27, 2013, 7:05 am
#1283
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: London and Zurich
Programs: AA, BA, Mucci: Sir Roger des Directions Routičres, PCR
Posts: 13,609
I also remember getting somebody else's details on the printout issued at EWR and the entertaining few minutes on the other side of the mirrored wall helping the authorities sort out their problem, sitting with other suspects awaiting interrogation.
Oct 14, 2013, 3:45 am
#1284
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: London
Programs: BA GGLfL
Posts: 1,342
I went through T5 immigration on 3 evenings last week and on 2 occasions had horrible queues, not helped by numpties struggling to use the EU passport chip machines. Does anyone know if there are any plans for frequent flyers eg. BA GGLs to have any kind of preferential treatment going forward?
Oct 14, 2013, 4:49 am
#1285
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Munich, Algarve, Sussex or S.F Bay Area
Programs: Mucci, BA Gold, A3*Gold, AA Plat, HH Gold, IHG Plat Amb, Marriott Plat
Posts: 4,156
I arrived T5 late last Friday evening on one of a number of aircraft delayed by the knock-on effects of the normal LHR day. The e-gates were closed and both the EU and non-EU border lines were more than 100m long. On complaining, the border official told me the e-gates have to close at 23:00 since it needs a BAA person to monitor the machines. Piss-poor.
On top of that, LHR was at its worst last Friday night:
- 30 minutes holding on approach
- guidance system deactivated at gate (20 mins delay on aircraft)
- jet bridghe not attended (another 15 mins on aircraft)
- passport control (30 mins delay for EU)
- baggage delay (a further 15 mins even after all other delays)
We picked up our rental car 2 hours and 15 minutes after landing !!
What I suppose I should say is that if Iris were still there, my wait at the baggage carousel would simply have been extended. So maybe the whole thing is just the UK border authority bringing their performance into line with the rest of LHR.
On top of that, LHR was at its worst last Friday night:
- 30 minutes holding on approach
- guidance system deactivated at gate (20 mins delay on aircraft)
- jet bridghe not attended (another 15 mins on aircraft)
- passport control (30 mins delay for EU)
- baggage delay (a further 15 mins even after all other delays)
We picked up our rental car 2 hours and 15 minutes after landing !!
What I suppose I should say is that if Iris were still there, my wait at the baggage carousel would simply have been extended. So maybe the whole thing is just the UK border authority bringing their performance into line with the rest of LHR.
Oct 14, 2013, 10:54 pm
#1286
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: From ORK, live LCY
Programs: BA Silver, EI Silver, HH Gold, BW Gold, ABP, Seigneur des Horaires des Mucci
Posts: 14,205
I arrived T5 late last Friday evening on one of a number of aircraft delayed by the knock-on effects of the normal LHR day. The e-gates were closed and both the EU and non-EU border lines were more than 100m long. On complaining, the border official told me the e-gates have to close at 23:00 since it needs a BAA person to monitor the machines. Piss-poor.
On top of that, LHR was at its worst last Friday night:
- 30 minutes holding on approach
- guidance system deactivated at gate (20 mins delay on aircraft)
- jet bridghe not attended (another 15 mins on aircraft)
- passport control (30 mins delay for EU)
- baggage delay (a further 15 mins even after all other delays)
We picked up our rental car 2 hours and 15 minutes after landing !!
What I suppose I should say is that if Iris were still there, my wait at the baggage carousel would simply have been extended. So maybe the whole thing is just the UK border authority bringing their performance into line with the rest of LHR.
On top of that, LHR was at its worst last Friday night:
- 30 minutes holding on approach
- guidance system deactivated at gate (20 mins delay on aircraft)
- jet bridghe not attended (another 15 mins on aircraft)
- passport control (30 mins delay for EU)
- baggage delay (a further 15 mins even after all other delays)
We picked up our rental car 2 hours and 15 minutes after landing !!
What I suppose I should say is that if Iris were still there, my wait at the baggage carousel would simply have been extended. So maybe the whole thing is just the UK border authority bringing their performance into line with the rest of LHR.
Oct 15, 2013, 9:36 am
#1287
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: London
Programs: SK Gold, ITA Executive, Sixt Diamond, Hertz PC, Avis PC, IHG Platinum
Posts: 5,163
I also came in on Friday night with all of the above delays, except that I made a big effort to get from a seat towards the front of the plane to border control expeditiously and managed to get a shorter queue at that stage. To their credit, UK Border Force was processing people faster than I've ever seen them do at LHR.
Over the weekend I've went through passport control in HEL, BUD, FCO and LHR [and other non-EU places] and UK was the only EU country where they scanned the passports - the rest just looked at it and compared you with a photo...
Oct 15, 2013, 11:05 pm
#1288
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: From ORK, live LCY
Programs: BA Silver, EI Silver, HH Gold, BW Gold, ABP, Seigneur des Horaires des Mucci
Posts: 14,205
Yes they were. Can't see that going away. Only other places my passport has been scanned within the EU are PRG and FRA.
