Thousands of Brits stranded as Easyjet AND Tui cancel flights from Gatwick, Birmingham & Manchester in half-term chaos

THOUSANDS of Brits face being stranded after easyJet AND TUI axed more than 200 flights over half-term.

EasyJet announced it will cancel more than 200 flights over the next 10 days.

They said its cancellations would affect about 24 flights per day from London's Gatwick airport between May 28 and June 6.

Meanwhile, Tui announced a "small number" of flight cancellations and delays in a blow to travel plans at the start of the half-term break.

The travel company said "various operational and supply chain issues" are to blame for the flight cancellations.

It has cancelled three flights from Birmingham, two flights from Gatwick and one from Manchester.

A Tui spokesperson said: "We would like to apologise for the inconvenience to customers who have experienced flight delays or a flight cancellation.

"Delays have been caused due to a combination of factors and we are doing everything we can to keep customers updated, and will provide refreshments and, where appropriate, provide hotel accommodation.

"Where we have made the difficult decision to cancel a small number of flights, customers will receive a full refund within 14 days and we will contact them directly to help them try and find another holiday.

"We would like to thank our customers for their understanding and apologise for any inconvenience caused."

The move is sure to cause travel chaos for holidaymakers hoping to get away for the half-term break.

EasyJet will be operating around 1,700 flights per day still - with around a quarter to and from Gatwick.

It comes after 200 flights were cancelled on Thursday due to an IT glitch.

Many passengers fumed they were stranded abroad due to the chaos.

Some also lost thousands of pounds after being forced to cancel their holidays or book onto other flights.

Meanwhile, at Gatwick, Bristol and Manchester airports - the worst-affected by the cancellations - huge queues stretched back as Brits battled to travel abroad.

An easyJet spokeswoman said: "We have taken the decision to make advance cancellations of around 24 Gatwick flights per day starting from tomorrow 28 May until 6 June.

"We are very sorry for the late notice of some of these cancellations and inconvenience caused for customers booked on these flights, however we believe this is necessary to provide reliable services over this busy period.

"Customers are being informed from today (Friday) and provided with the option to rebook their flight or receive a refund and can apply for compensation in line with regulations."

The latest chaos comes after Brits were urged to check travel advice before heading to the port of Dover.

The Department for Transport warned the roads in Kent are "extremely busy" due to an "exceptionally high number" of travellers.

P&O Ferries still not running all of its ferry sailings has added to the mayhem.

There are also huge queues at London St Pancras for football fans using the Eurostar to get to Paris.