EasyJet is going to start turning away late passengers who arrive 30min before departure

EasyJet is going to start turning away passengers who arrive at security less than 30 minutes before take-off, it has been revealed.

The budget airline will reportedly stop anyone trying to pass through the security barriers in an attempt to crack down on late passengers.

The new rule also means they could end up paying £80 to switch to another flight, The Independent reports.

As the peak holiday season approaches, the airline has instructed Gatwick to reprogramme its security barriers, so that travellers with a boarding time of less than half an hour would be turned away.

In the past, passengers with hand-luggage only were able to pass through security at the very last moment and sprint to the departure gate in the hope of making their flight.

But now, passengers have explicitly been told about the crack down on their boarding pass.

The small print reportedly reads: ‘Gatwick security control gates are automatically being timed to close 30 minutes before departure.’

Those passengers who miss the cut-off point will be told to return to the easyJet desk and ‘rearrange’ their flights.

The airline already sells a ‘missed flight cover’ for £7.50 that you can purchase before you travel so you’ll be able to get a full refund or get the next flight if you’re late.

But if you don’t buy that cover and you run late, easyJet will charge you a ‘rescue fee’ of £80 to switch to another flight.

A spokesperson for easyJet told the paper that the new rule is being imposed to benefit passengers.

He said it would give passengers the heads up so that they ‘do not needlessly clear security at the point where the gate is already closed.’

But he explained that the barrier closure is ‘dictated by live flight data, based on the actual time of the flight and not the scheduled time’ so some ‘leeway’ is given’.

‘Occasionally, gates may not shut precisely at – 30 [minutes before departure] for a number of operational and passenger reasons.’