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As peak summer travel season hits the European Union, the bloc’s newly rolled-out digital Entry Exit System (EES) has triggered widespread long queues and significant processing delays for non-EU travelers at major continental airports, drawing sharp criticism from airport operators and airline carriers alike.

Implemented in a phased rollout starting last October, EES mandates that all non-EU citizens entering the 29-nation Schengen Area must register biometric data — including fingerprints and a facial photograph — upon arrival, with the information cross-checked when travelers exit the bloc. Most processing is completed via standalone automated kiosks, though minors and other travelers with special requirements must complete the step in person with border agents. Even with incremental technical adjustments and process changes implemented in recent months, top officials at Rome’s Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci Airport, Italy’s busiest international gateway, confirm wait times for UK travelers have nearly tripled compared to pre-EES protocols.

Fiumicino’s Chief Aviation Officer Ivan Bassato told the BBC that even after integrating EES processing into existing passport e-gates — a modification that followed a €12 million investment in standalone kiosks that proved unable to handle peak passenger volumes — average wait times for UK nationals have jumped from just 7 minutes pre-EES to 20 minutes currently. Some passengers arriving during peak windows have reported waiting one to two hours to clear border control, with several missing connecting transportation and even departing flights after long holds. Bassato, whose airport is widely regarded as one of the most technologically advanced in Europe, emphasized that current wait times are unacceptable, calling for urgent systemic fixes. He outlined two key adjustments: cutting redundant process steps that create unnecessary duplication, and expanding the use of the EU’s pre-registration app, which is currently only active in two member states: Sweden and Portugal.

While airport and airline leaders have urged the European Commission to allow member states to temporarily suspend EES during peak travel periods to ease congestion, a policy meeting held earlier this month failed to produce any changes to the current framework. Member states retain the right to suspend the system only under exceptional circumstances.

The issue is not isolated to Italy. At Portugal’s busy Faro Airport, a top destination for summer sun-seeking UK travelers, border police have also documented growing delays linked to EES, as well as recurring technical bugs. Superintendent Pedro Oliveira, head of border control at Faro, acknowledged that what previously would have been a 10-minute wait can now stretch to more than 30 minutes. He added that the system is vulnerable to cross-network outages: server issues originating in other parts of the EU can crash EES across all member states simultaneously, requiring a full system reboot that adds more downtime for passengers. Oliveira noted that these outages have become less frequent in recent months, and that extreme waits over an hour are rare at Faro, limited only to unexpected peaks when dozens of flights arrive within a narrow window. Portugal has responded to delays by recruiting additional border officers and adjusting rules to require all minors under 16 to process with staff rather than kiosks.

Budget carrier Ryanair, one of the largest operators of transnational flights into the EU, has been among the most vocal critics of the rollout, calling it a “failed implementation” that creates avoidable travel disruption. The airline has warned UK passengers traveling to Europe this summer to plan for extended waits and build extra time into their travel itineraries. Passengers interviewed across Rome, one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, shared widespread stories of frustrating delays: UK traveler Carl, who arrived in Rome from Yorkshire with young children, reported a two-hour wait from plane disembarkation to border clearance. “I knew it was going to be bad, but not that bad,” he said. US visitor David, traveling with his wife, waited an hour and missed his pre-booked private transfer. Other travelers arriving through Barcelona similarly reported 45 to 60 minute waits, with some noting their border queue time matched the length of their flight to Spain.

In response to the widespread reports of disruption, the European Commission stated that disruptions are limited at most EU airports, adding that it will continue providing full support to member states as they work through implementation challenges.

In the pre-dawn stillness of 2:50 a.m., a reinforced, temperature-controlled crate wrapped in an aluminum frame rolled through the loading bay doors of London’s British Museum. Inside, wrapped in centuries of history, lay the Bayeux Tapestry — making its first return to British soil in nearly 1,000 years, since historians believe it was originally crafted here shortly after the 1066 Norman Conquest.

Escorted by French police from an undisclosed northern French holding location and transported across the Channel via Eurotunnel, the 70-meter 11th-century embroidery completed its 300-plus-mile journey under cover of night to minimize risk to the fragile artifact. The arrival was witnessed by a small group of stakeholders including the French ambassador to the UK and British Museum leadership, with BBC News on hand to document the landmark moment.

The iconic work of medieval textile art weaves 58 vivid scenes detailing the chain of events that led to William of Normandy’s invasion of England and the defeat of Anglo-Saxon King Harold II — a turning point that redefined the course of British history, politics, language and culture. Despite its name, the Bayeux Tapestry is technically an embroidery: stitched onto linen with colored wool yarn, it includes 626 figures, 202 horses, and detailed depictions of 11th-century architecture, warfare, seafaring and daily life that no surviving written source can match. Historians credit its survival for nearly a millennium, through threats of moths, fire, flooding and war, as nothing short of a miracle.

The nine-month loan is a landmark cultural agreement between the French and UK governments, finalized last year between French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. The arrangement comes as Bayeux Museum, where the tapestry has been on permanent display since 1983, undergoes major renovation work. In exchange for the temporary loan, the British Museum is sending two of its most iconic British treasures to Normandy: the famed Sutton Hoo ship burial hoard and the 12th-century Lewis chessmen, carved from walrus ivory.

British Museum director Nick Cullinan called the tapestry’s return a once-in-a-lifetime historic event. “We’ve just witnessed something rather extraordinary… it feels like a really remarkable thing not just to witness but to be part of, and we’re so excited to share it with as many people as possible,” he said. Millie Horton-Insch, the exhibition’s project curator, acknowledged that the quiet unloading of a crate might seem unremarkable to an outside observer, but for her and her team, the moment carried profound weight. “When you consider the object within it, how old it was, how close to the events it depicts it was made, by people who lived through those events, it’s really profound,” she said, adding that she teared up as the crate was unloaded. Macron signaled the warm diplomatic spirit of the loan earlier, when he shared an image of the tapestry projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover, captioned with a simple “merci beaucoup.”

The historic loan has not been without controversy, however. Since the agreement was announced, French critics have raised urgent concerns about the risk of damage to the fragile textile, which has not left Bayeux in decades. A public petition opposing the move labeled it a “heritage crime,” and even famed late British artist David Hockney publicly opposed the transport, arguing that “some things are too precious to take a risk with.”

Museum and government officials on both sides have emphasized that every possible precaution was taken to protect the artifact during transit. After the tapestry was removed from its display stand in Bayeux last year, it was kept on its custom folding mount, placed inside a climate-controlled inner crate, then fitted into an outer aluminum-framed crate fitted with metal spring shock absorbers to buffer against road vibrations. Curators and transport teams completed two full test runs of the route using an identical textile replica to measure vibration levels and refine safety protocols, before the original artwork made its journey.

Cullinan stressed that the loan would never have moved forward if any stakeholder had deemed it too risky. “If anybody had said on the other side, especially on the French side as the lenders, ‘I think this is too risky to do’, it wouldn’t be arriving now. That’s the reality. A museum would never do something that imperilled the objects in its care,” he said. Peter Ricketts, the UK’s special envoy for the tapestry loan, added that all meticulous preparations had paid off, with the artifact arriving in perfect condition. “everything possible had been done to avoid damage,” he said. “No one would want to bring the tapestry to the UK if they thought there was any damage or danger to this extraordinary object. I’m not worried, I’m relieved.” Ricketts framed the loan as a meaningful act of cultural diplomacy, calling it “two old nations coming together to look at their shared history and that is very special.”

Public excitement for the September opening has already reached historic levels: the British Museum sold a record 100,000 tickets on the first day of sales alone. Unlike its permanent display in Bayeux, the tapestry will be exhibited flat in London, per the terms of the loan, with a custom mezzanine viewing platform that will allow visitors to see the entire 70-meter work in one view — an experience that has never been possible before in the tapestry’s history. Over the coming weeks, conservation teams will conduct a painstaking pre-display examination of the embroidery to document its condition ahead of the opening, marking the final step in a journey nearly 1,000 years in the making.

In an unprecedented and sharply escalated step that has shaken global Catholicism, the Vatican has excommunicated every member of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), a conservative traditionalist splinter group counting more than half a million worshippers worldwide. The extraordinary punishment comes after the group defied a direct order from Pope Leo XIV to consecrate four new bishops during a ceremony in Geneva, Switzerland on Wednesday.

The crackdown extends far beyond the SSPX’s six active bishops, all of whom have now been formally excommunicated. In a highly unusual departure from standard church discipline, the Vatican has also ruled that all lay followers who remain affiliated with the society are to be classified as schismatic and stripped of their communion with the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican did leave an open door for reconciliation, noting that any members who choose to leave the SSPX and return to full communion with the institutional church will be welcomed with sincere pastoral affection.

Founded in 1970, the SSPX has long stood in opposition to the sweeping modernizing reforms adopted by the global Catholic Church at the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. Named for Pope Pius X, a 20th century pontiff famous for his staunch resistance to theological and liturgical modernization, the group retains traditional liturgical practices rejected by most modern Catholic communities. Unlike the standard Novus Ordo Mass celebrated in local languages around the world, all SSPX services are held exclusively in Latin, with priests facing the altar rather than the congregation during worship. Communion is only placed directly into the mouth of kneeling worshippers, a departure from the common practice of allowing congregants to receive the sacrament while standing and holding it themselves. Women in SSPX congregations are also required to cover their heads during services, and the group as a whole adheres to far stricter, more traditional social teachings than the mainstream modern Catholic Church. It also rejects the Vatican’s modern stance of pursuing open interfaith dialogue with other Christian denominations and non-Christian religious traditions.

Today, the SSPX claims approximately 600,000 followers spread across the globe, with its largest concentrations of members in the United States and France. In the United Kingdom alone, the group hosts regular Masses at 26 separate locations, stretching from Lerwick in the Shetland Islands down to Devon, with its main UK regional hub based in Wimbledon, South London.

For many long-time SSPX followers, the break with the Vatican does not weaken their commitment to the group – if anything, it has reinforced their conviction that they are the ones upholding true Catholic doctrine. Rita Reid, a 76-year-old retired bed and breakfast owner from Jersey in the Channel Islands, said the excommunication announcement left her feeling stronger in her beliefs. “Before the consecrations yesterday I said to my husband, ‘Do you know what? Even if they excommunicate us, go ahead, bring it on, it’s not going to make one bit of difference,” Reid shared in an interview.

Reid, who previously attended both modern mainstream Catholic services and SSPX gatherings before committing fully to the traditionalist group, described SSPX liturgies as far more profound than the contemporary Mass, saying she feels the true presence of Jesus in SSPX ceremonies that is missing from the modern liturgy, which she called “so weak and wishy-washy.” She also criticized mainstream Catholic parishes for failing to consistently teach traditional social values, such as the church’s historic teaching against premarital sex, arguing that this lack of clear guidance has led younger generations of Catholics to abandon core doctrinal teachings.

This is not the first time the SSPX has clashed with the Vatican over unauthorized episcopal consecrations. In the 1980s, SSPX bishops were excommunicated for similar acts of disobedience to Rome, but that earlier punishment was later reversed by the Vatican as part of outreach efforts to repair the rift between the church and the traditionalist group. In recent years, Vatican officials had held ongoing talks aimed at reaching a full reconciliation that would bring the SSPX back into full communion with Rome.

Analysts and Catholic observers had widely expected that the unsanctioned consecrations in Geneva would lead to excommunication for the four newly ordained bishops and the society’s existing leadership. What has caught many off guard is the Vatican’s decision to extend the excommunication penalty to all 600,000 lay members of the SSPX, a far harsher step than most predicted. The move pushes the traditionalist group further away from the center of Catholic power than it has ever been in its 54-year history.

Excommunication is one of the harshest disciplinary penalties the Catholic Church can issue, effectively expelling recipients from full membership in the faith and barring them from core elements of Catholic spiritual life. Excommunicated believers are considered out of communion with the church, meaning they cannot receive the sacraments – including confession and marriage – through official Catholic channels. In an official statement released Thursday, the Vatican clarified that “The sacred ministers of the Society of St Pius X administer the sacraments illicitly, while the sacrament of penance they administer and the marriages they witness are invalid.”

The ruling now leaves SSPX members with a clear choice: remain part of a movement the Vatican has formally labeled a schism, or abandon their traditionalist beliefs and practices to retain their membership in the Roman Catholic Church. For many SSPX followers, however, the conviction remains firm: it is the modern Vatican that has strayed from true Catholic doctrine, not the traditionalist movement that seeks to preserve the faith unchanged.

VATICAN CITY – In a historic, hardline rebuke of a long-disobedient traditionalist Catholic group, the Holy See announced Thursday it has formally designated the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) a schismatic body, issuing sweeping excommunications to all of the group’s bishops and priests after the society consecrated four new bishops without Pope Leo XIV’s explicit approval.

The action from the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith far outpaces the baseline penalties laid out in Catholic canon law, coming one day after the SSPX carried out its controversial episcopal ordination at the group’s seminary in Econe, Switzerland. The five-hour ceremony, packed with ritual and attended by more than 15,000 lay faithful and their children, marked a deliberate act of defiance against Pope Leo, who had publicly urged the society to abandon the consecrations to protect broader church unity.

Founded in 1970 by French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the SSPX has existed as an informal breakaway movement from the Catholic Church for decades, born out of fierce opposition to the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II). The 1960s ecumenical council reshaped Catholic life, updating the church’s relationships with other Christian denominations, Judaism, and world religions, and permitting the celebration of Mass in local languages rather than the traditional Latin that had been standard for centuries. The SSPX rejects these changes, arguing Vatican II introduced widespread heresy and pulled the global church away from core Catholic doctrine, and it exclusively celebrates the pre-conciliar Latin Mass.

This is not the first time the SSPX has clashed with Rome over unauthorized consecrations: Lefebvre ordained four bishops without papal consent in 1988, prompting an immediate Vatican response that excommunicated all involved and labeled the act schismatic. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI lifted those excommunications as part of a multi-year outreach effort aimed at reconciling the traditionalist group with the Holy See. Even after that gesture, however, the SSPX held no formal legal status within the Catholic Church, and Thursday’s decree permanently formalizes the break.

The penalties announced Thursday are unusually broad, rolling back all of the concessions Rome had granted the SSPX during decades of reconciliation efforts. The Vatican’s decree excommunicates the four newly consecrated bishops and the two existing SSPX bishops who officiated the ceremony, labels the entire society’s existence as an intentional rupture from Catholic teaching, and extends excommunication to all SSPX priests. For lay faithful who formally align themselves with the SSPX, the decree also imposes excommunication, and invalidates all sacraments of confession and marriage celebrated by SSPX clergy.

The unauthorized consecrations created a critical test for Pope Leo XIV, an American pontiff who has centered his papacy on the theme of church unity. Notably, Leo has made targeted outreach to conservative and traditionalist Catholic groups that felt alienated during the pontificate of Pope Francis, making the SSPX’s open defiance all the more challenging for his leadership. Thursday’s aggressive response makes clear that after nearly 50 years of negotiation and outreach, the Holy See has exhausted its willingness to compromise with the group.

Vatican observers note the harsh response is also a reaction to the SSPX’s slow but steady growth since its original split from Rome, which has allowed it to function as a parallel ultra-traditional Catholic institution that directly challenges the authority of the Holy See. According to the SSPX’s own public data, the movement now counts six bishops, 751 priests, 264 seminarians across five formation houses, 145 religious brothers, 88 oblates, 250 religious sisters, and members spanning 50 nationalities.

SSPX leadership has defended its actions, framing the consecrations as necessary to preserve what it calls the “true Catholic faith” against what it describes as widespread modernist and liberal error within the institutional church. The society claims a “state of necessity” requires it to ordain new clergy to serve its global community of faithful. In his homily during Wednesday’s ordination ceremony, SSPX Superior General Rev. Davide Pagliarani insisted the group’s actions were actually intended to support Pope Leo and the church.

“We are accused of not respecting the pope,” Pagliarani said. “But it is precisely because we love the pope as the vicar of Christ, as the head of the church, that we don’t want to see the pope humiliated anymore, on the side of false shepherds representing false religions.”