Travellers flying from Gatwick Airport complained of “chaos” on Monday morning, when an IT issue caused the departure lounge’s flight information boards to fail.

Staff were forced to use whiteboards to display vital travel information and updates, wiping off the writing and changing it when alterations were announced:

Large crowds soon began forming as passengers tried to see the updates, while a “handful” of people missed their flights.

In a statement issued on Twitter, a spokesperson for Gatwick Airport said: “Due to an ongoing issue with Vodafone – a provider of IT services for Gatwick – flight information is not being displayed correctly on the airport’s digital screens and is currently displayed manually in the terminals.

“Gatwick would like to apologise to any passengers affected and expects Vodafone to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.”