A passenger was turned away from their flight at Gatwick airport, as airline staff got passport rules wrong again, it has been reported.

Sue Heath, from Buckinghamshire, was due to fly from to Malta two days before Christmas, but claims she was forced to vacate her seat before the aircraft left the airport. The 64-year-old was due to sit in seat 23C and even though her UK passport is valid for travel to and the rest of the European Union until late March, ground staff wrongly ordered Sue to depart the plane, reports

The reason she was instructed to get off the plane was due to having an 'expired' passport, when it was actually still in date.

“I was told my passport was not valid for the EU,” she told The Independent. “I had to accept their decision and sadly miss my Christmas in Malta. I felt very humble and embarrassed that I had messed up.” The ground staff at Gatwick may have been in the wrong in asking Sue to leave. A similar incident occured in 2024, when two separate passengers were turned away from their British Airways flight at Gatwick Airport.

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Since a UK passport must meet two conditions for travel to the — firstly, passports must be no more than 10 years old on the day of entry to the EU, and secondly, there must be at least three months remaining on the passport from the intended day of departure from the EU.

Sue claims her passport met both of these conditions, however she said ground staff appeared confused about whether her passport was valid. The gate agent was concerned about Sue's passport not being acceptable and initially said that she could not board the flight, it was reported. The ground staff reportedly then tried to call her office but could not get an answer, so looked at Sue's passport again and allowed Sue to check back in and board the aircraft.

However, around 10 minutes before the departure, the same ground staff member found Sue onboard the plane and asked for her passport again. The staff member phoned her office, gave all of Sue's and return flight information too, Sue explained. “She then said unfortunately I couldn’t travel, as I would have had to be out and back from Malta by 22 December 24. Then she took me off the plane," added Sue.

After leaving the flight, Sue was reportedly escorted out of the airport through and customs, into the arrivals hall by a British Airways agent. She later travelled home and called British Airways customer service, claiming that they informed her that documentation was her responsibility and that she needed to call an embassy if she wished to gain clarification.

The post-Brexit rules took effect back in 2021 and British Airways, along with other airlines, were informed of them in that year. Under air passengers’ rights rules, Sue may be entitled to £350 in compensation for being denied boarding, as well as her refunded.

A British Airways spokesperson said: “We are investigating this particular case to understand why the customer wasn’t permitted to travel and are in contact with them directly to resolve it as soon as possible.”

The Mirror has contacted BA for additional comment.