Manchester Airport: video shows passenger crawling onto luggage belt to find bags in C4 Dispatches show

An undercover journalist has captured the moment a fed-up passenger crawled onto a luggage carousel and out a hatch to search for her bags at Manchester Airport.

An investigation by Channel 4’s Dispatches programme recorded the shocking clip while filming undercover at the airport, as part of a look into the chronic staffing issues affecting the aviation industry - which have led to delays and missing bags at many UK airports this year.

In the clip, a woman is seen appearing under the flaps at the end of the carousel and asking the undercover reporter, who got a job as a baggage handler to film for the documentary, if she can help offload the luggage as she has been waiting nearly 90 minutes after arriving from Antalya in Turkey with Pegasus airlines.

The clip ends with the reporter saying he will go and ask a supervisor what’s happening but adding there have been a lot of problems with bags thanks to delayed or cancelled flights.

It comes as hundreds of passengers have taken to social media in recent weeks to complain about missing or delayed bags at Manchester Airport.

Luggage is handled by third-parties contracted by individual airlines who operate out of Manchester Airport.

Baggage handling contractor Swissport told Dispatches it was “sorry for our part in the disruption some people have experienced at Manchester Airport... We are doing everything we can to mitigate delays for passengers, including hiring more than 4,100 people since January.”

If you have a missing or delayed bag, check out our guide here to what you can do about it.

• Airport Chaos Undercover: Dispatches is on Channel 4 tonight (1 August).