Stansted's response is prompted after an MP tweets an image of passport security queues.
Explaining its process, the airport said each passenger has to stop and scan their boarding card to enter the passport control area, and follow all security checks.
"The security area is designed to screen up to 5,000 passengers an hour so there will always be other passengers in the area," a spokesman said. Some 38,000 passengers departed Stansted on Sunday, with more than 9,000 processed between 04:00 and 07:00 BST, with an average queue time of 12 minutes, he added.
It is understood the Labour MP for Tottenham did not follow-up his 06:24 BST tweet, which criticised Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Home Secretary Priti Patel and used the hashtag #backlogBritain. The incident comes at a time when airports and airlines across the UK have been criticised for long queues and many flights being cancelled, caused by a number of factors.
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