Frustrations turn to violence in Buenos Aires

Ezeira International Airport in Buenos Aires, Argentina was not a pleasant place to be this weekend, as riots broke out after most Aerolineas Argentinas flights were cancelled or suspended due to what the airline cited as a problem stemming from labour unions for tarmac workers and pilots.

Angry passengers toppled computers at check-in points and clashed with security guards after what they deemed enough waiting without any satisfactory information. Also causing consternation amongst flyers was the fact that the unions in question blamed overbooking as the reason for the massive halt to operations.

As things got more and more unruly and out of control, the check-in desks were shut in the afternoon; but not before one of the airline workers was physically assaulted. All the action meant no information was getting through to the waiting passengers, and the delays that have plagued the airport since Friday have left many stranded. A woman whose flight to Venezuela was cancelled on Friday afternoon told local reporters, “There’s no one from the company, no one is showing their face or telling us when we’re going to fly. We’re stranded with children and the elderly.”