A DESPERATE holidaymaker arrived at the airport 12 hours early to avoid the colossal queues at check-in and security.

The passenger didn't want to be caught out as thousands of families jetting off over the Easter break face huge wait times due to staff shortages.

The unnamed man, who is travelling from Coventry to Zimbabwe, got to Manchester Airport with half a day to spare.

He told MEN: "I'm thinking if I come here nice and early I won’t have to deal with all that madness over there."

All three terminals have been plagued by queueing chaos since most schools broke up for Easter last week.

Travellers have complained of mammoth lines at check-in and severe delays through security as Covid leaves airports short on staff.

Travel chaos as 21M cars hit the road TODAY for Easter hols amid airport mayhem

Travel chaos continues as British Airways and easyJet cancel more flights today

The mayhem got so bad on Friday, children were reportedly forced to pee in plastic bags while stuck for five hours.

While some people have managed to breeze through UK airports without worry, others have faced the total opposite.

Sharing a video of holidaymakers packed in like sardines at Heathrow, Tamlyn Worrall said: "Total carnage."

The problems have pushed several airlines to cancel huge numbers of flights.

Most read in The Sun

PUT A BLING ON IT

Brooklyn marries billionaire heiress in celeb-packed wedding of decade

GRAND NATIONAL

50/1 Noble Yeats WINS for Sam Waley-Cohen's final ride in Aintree shocker

BREAKING POINT

Starving shoppers loot supermarket amid world's strictest Covid lockdown

CUT AND BYE

Fury forced into late change with cutman 'Stitch' Duran absent for Whyte fight

British Airways has axed 84 flights so far today, while easyJet has grounded at least 38 from London Gatwick alone – both citing staff shortages caused by sickness.

Up to 20,000 passengers flying domestically and abroad could be affected.

Elsewhere, passengers were forced to queue outside the terminal at Dublin Airport at 4am as it continued to struggle with security staff shortages.

There were "massive, massive, massive" queues at security at Leeds Bradford "from one end of the airport to the other".

And headteacher Paul Haigh described his experience at Manchester Airport as "dire both ways".

Train cancellations in the Gatwick area and closures on the M4 around Berkshire and Greater London have also added to the stress.