Why is the airport cafe not open for business?

Alas, the journey was wasted as delays left them at Gatwick.

While waiting, my wife was speaking to a person who was working at the airport and ‘apparently’ was informed that she would be unable to get a cup of tea and a snack as the cafe was closed.

My wife was also ‘informed’ that visitors who were stranded and due to fly back to Scotland were advised to pop into the Co-op down the road to get a cup of tea and a snack as the cafe was closed.

I know that this little story sounds fanciful so thought that rather than write this letter I would telephone the airport on 01481 237766 and ask someone what the situation was in relation to a closed cafe and also other possible outlets not being serviceable.

After holding on the telephone for 10 minutes, I came to the conclusion that no one was going to answer the telephone or indeed answer any questions that I have.

So to conclude, through this letter can I ask if someone at the helm of things at the airport could explain what is going on (or rather not going on) in relation to customer facilities at Guernsey Airport?

As highlighted also by the front page of the Guernsey Press article on 24 August, ‘Airport passengers left stranded …’ nothing frustrates the general public more than ‘Guernsey Ports was contacted but did not respond in time for publication’.

ART ALLEN O’LEARY

St Martin’s

Head of passenger operations and aviation security Steve Langlois responded:

I thank your correspondent for bringing this situation to our attention and before I address their comments, may I first offer an apology.

Like many local operators in the hospitality industry, regrettably our cafe concessionaires are struggling with a chronic shortage of staff and have not been in a position to open the land-side cafe on a consistent basis. As a consequence, they have reluctantly had to concentrate their efforts on ‘air-side’ facilities, at the expense of resuming the ‘land-side’ cafe on the first floor. A vending machine solution is shortly to be installed in the ‘land-side’ area, although Guernsey Ports recognises that the customer experience here has recently fallen short of what should be expected.

I cannot explain why your phone call was not answered on Tuesday 23 August and can only apologise. Our main customer information desk is staffed during office hours (9am to 6pm), seven days a week and the staff can be contacted on 01481 237267. Alternatively, any questions or comments can be forwarded by email to airport@gov.gg.

Following significant challenges with the provision of a wide range of customer services during the pandemic, I can confirm that customer facilities which we have traditionally provided, or which we otherwise let, are now all back in operation, with the exception of the land-side cafe and retail facilities. We are working with our providers to establish how these can be provided.

Please accept our apologies for your experience and we hope to be able to welcome your correspondent to Guernsey Airport again soon.