Tony&Perry

Arrived around 8pm terminal C. The immigration "lounge" was choc-a-bloc for both US and visitors and took 90 mins to clear. Many people missed ongoing connections. Immigration officer said it was always like this on Saturdays as extra flights from south America arrive Saturdays. Be warned! Only 5 lines for US and residents open. SHAME!!!!!

JeremyZ

I went through C passport control last Saturday at around 7pm, and it only took about 15 minutes. Probably only 7 or 8 lines open for US citizens, but it didn't take that long. Global Entry was completely empty FWIW.

UAPremExecflyer

Suggestion: Sign up for Global Access. Skip the lines. Go to the machine(s). Insert passport or appropriate travel document. Place fingers on pad. Wait for match. Answer questions. Collect receipt. Go to immigration. Time taken: usually about 90 secs.

buckeyefanflyer

There are not alot of incoming Inernational flights at 7:00PM. I came in from CUN in the afternoon and had a 1 hour wait, there were hundreds of people in front of me.

Newarkflyer

Yes, Saturdays are often like this. It's an expensive day to travel, too, usually, and the flights are usually packed! Thank goodness I have Global Entry!

duchy

Happens at most US airports from time to time.

Seems to me you can better the chances by avoiding peak times/days but if you (or another international flight)is delayed or arrives early it can mess up all the calculations anyway.

I've sometimes missed connections because a European carrier arrived just ahead of me and the lines were slow -presumably because of the language issue other times I've got through in 10 minutes. Just one of those things.

Apart from employing more staff to deal with unpredictable "bulges" (poor use of tax dollars yadda yadda) I don't see what else can be done.Just part of international air travel.

trust77

I learned my lesson after waiting almost the same amount of time when i arrived @ IAD from LHR. Throughout the entire wait the only advertisement I saw was for the Global Entry Program. I'd say the $100 fee is well worth the hassle, impatience, and frustration I have since left behind after becoming a participant.

PublicBJ

Exactly why I joined Global Entry. Also, if you fly to the UK a lot, sign up for their IRIS program -- you don't have to be UK or EU to do it.

tarheelnj

Last trip through EWR Terminal C Immigration with Global Entry (and carry on). Time from exiting plane to getting in car - 12 minutes.

trust77

why does CO not participate in the FastTrak program @ LHR...?

thaliajen

Based in DTW, I always go through customs in IAH or EWR. And we always have problems at EWR. It just seems like they are understaffed or just don't know what they're doing. So when I take my Caribbean flights, I go through IAH. For years, very few problems to speak of, other than not enough time between planes. But on Wednesday, all Hell broke loose.

I was flying back from CUN and had to go through immigration/customs in IAH. I had an hour and 40 minutes between flights. Normally, that would give me time for a shower at the PC. But I was stunned to get to immigration and find lines to the back wall! We were all shifting off and on into new lines and they were LONG. I was astonished.

It took me about 90 minutes to get through, with OUT any checked luggage. People were very upset and normally I would say, hey, it happens. But the airport KNOWS the schedules of the International flights. I was lucky, I had some leeway time. But when I saw that there were only 4 open booths, I was angry, too. Four booths for several flights worth of people? And when I reached the front of the line, a lady with a clipboard asked me what flight I was on. As 1st person off the CUN flight, they were at least ASKING what flight we'd come in on.

People were confused, angry, and everyone around me but one lady who was headed to the West Coast, missed their connections. So we waited and waited and as soon as I get towards the front, they FINALLY open an extra booth. The guy came and herded some people from behind me to the new booth and they got to skip ahead. I was almost to the front so I wasn't too angry, but the crowd broke out in boos and irritated jeers.

Now, I know that Immigration is not a place to boo anyone and I didn't, but when the man who opened the booth turned and yelled, "Hey, it took me an hour to get here from home!" I so badly wanted to yell back, " But why didn't you come sooner?" Now after the fact I'm calmer and I know that he was probably called in to deal with this, as were a couple other people (I think) b/c when I got to my booth, the line was moving faster and more of the closed signs were no longer up in lights.

I got through, thanked God that I hadn't checked any bags or purchased my hubby the cologne I liked in duty-free. I ran through, got up the escalator and through security and like an angel, a man on a cart stopped and picked me up, taking me so far away that I never would've made it on foot. When I got to the gate I had a few minutes to change out of shorts and sandals to more appropriate snow attire for MI weather. The plane had begun boarding when I sat down near a couple who had been scheduled for the earlier flight to DTW but missed it b/c of immigration being so bad. That earlier flight was in the afternoon, and they told me that Immigration had been so bad that people were backed into that hallway, completely out of the Immigration hall.

We took off on time with a half empty 1st Class section and not many in economy. We might've even left early, it sure seemed that way. I realized that I would not have made the plane if I had not been in 1st Class (I was 1st off plane & ran b/c I was hoping to get to PC) or if I had checked luggage or the biggest "if", the electric cart. If that guy hadn't stopped as I was running to the gate (which was wrong, BTW, it had been changed) I wouldn't have made my flight, the last one into DTW, the 11pm arrival.

I have since heard more than a few stories of IAH Immigration falling WAY below expectation in the past weeks. I don't know if it is true, or if there's a reason, but I do know that a CO rep says it is costing them $ b/c so many people are missing their connections.

I also know I will be planning longer connections between International flights from now on. I thought an hour and 40 minutes would be enough with no luggage and being 1st class on both flights. I was wrong. I still don't understand how airports can let it get THAT bad, but maybe they're working on it.

And a bit OT- I found security on this trip extremely tight. Not only was I bodyscanned, wanded and had an agent search the waist of my jeans at DTW, but I had my carry-on and laptop case examined both in DTW, CUN-both at TSA and boarding, and again at IAH after customs. I don't normally complain as I really DO want to feel safe. I just wonder why, all of a sudden, security is such a nightmare. Repacking my bag after CUN took forever and b/c of the way they repacked, it barely got in the overhead.

I'm sure they'll figure it all out, and meanwhile, I think I'll try domestic routes instead of International, when possible. And while this experience at IAH bothered me, I still prefer it over EWR!

From NYC

Absolutely Global Entry for the USA, and IRIS for the UK.

PublicBJ

Geez, I wish. Security lines at LHR can be awful at times.

cbechdel

CO Had Fastrack at LGW, I've written them a few times (and Facebooked to their page) asking to add it at LHR. Reply has been "We're looking into adding Fastrack". nothing more. I did reply back a month later offering to do the research for them No response on my offer of help.

ANd what is confusing to many (myself for a few flights), elites can use SECURITY fasttrack lanes, but not IMMIGRATION fasttrack lines. Having been shot down at immigration on the way in, just assumed no fasttrack at all and didn't use it elsewhere several times.

UNITED offers it.

From what I understand the airline has to pay some sort of fee to use the system, wonder how much that is? I'd be totally fine with it added into my ticket price.

cbechdel

I've been using Security Fasttrack with no issues (elite access). Been told we just can't use the Immigration lanes, only security lanes.

Had to do some research to determine this, and confirmed at the BAA website.

But honestly, don't really see much difference in the single fasttrack security lane speed versus the line to access the other several screening lanes all said and done.