Holidaymakers travelling across Europe this summer have been warned to factor in 'triple the amount of time' needed at airports as the EU's new border systems causes lenghty delays.

The digital Entry Exit System (EES) has caused the time for Brits to get through passport control to triple, according to a boss at Rome's main airport.

It comes after Ryanair issued a new warning to millions of UK families travelling to 15 European airports this summer.

The budget airline said families are likely to encounter lengthy passport queues and airport delays thanks to the EES, which it slammed as a failure months after its introduction.

Despite the warnings, the European Commission said in most EU airports disruption is limited, and member states will be supported in the system's implementation.

It added: "This support will continue to the fullest extent possible."

The new digital EES requires non-EU citizens entering the Schengen area to scan fingerprints and a photo on arrival, which is then checked as they leave.

Most of this is done indepedently via 'kiosks' with the new system and machines rolling out since October.

As a result many passengers have missed flights home as hour-long queues formed at passport control.

Budget airline Ryanair said: "The reality is that the EES system isn’t working properly, and families are paying the price for a system that does not work months after launch. Passengers should not be the testing ground for unfinished border infrastructure."

The airline warned UK passengers they should "allow extra time for their journey and be prepared for extended waits at passport control."

Rome's Fiumicino airport has integrated the use of e-gates alongside the self-service kiosks.

Ivan Bassato, the airport's Chief Aviation Officer, told the BBC the implementation of e-gates "improved things significantly".

However, the time for UK national to get through the border has risen from seven minutes to 20.

Bassato said: "We are not at the point where you have the same quality of the process [as] before the EES."

He added that the airport is "absolutely not okay with" waits of one or two hours and changes need to be made/

He said: "I think that we need to fix urgently certain aspects of the system."

Countries that have introduced the EES system are able to suspend it under exceptional circumstances.

Airports and airlines are urging the European Commission to allow them to proactively suspend the process ahead of particularly busy times.

But, no changes have been made despite a meeting earlier this month.