Passport control delays at Heathrow left passengers queuing for up to two and a half hours last month, figures obtained by Virgin Atlantic show.
The UK Border Force missed its target of a 45-minute wait or less for 95% of visitors from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) on 30 out of 31 days in July.
The longest queues at the London gateway this summer were on July 6 when arrivals from outside the EU and a handful of other European countries spent up to two hours and 36 minutes waiting in immigration lines.
The government said it is deploying 200 extra staff to Heathrow this summer.
But Virgin Atlantic said passengers are “frustrated”.
Chief executive Craig Kreeger said while it is agreed that security and safety is a priority, other countries are managing their borders better than the UK.
He said “only the Border Force” can take action to “resolve these unacceptable queue times”.
“At a time when the UK needs to show the world it is open for business, the government and Border Force need to provide a great first impression for every visitor every time.
“Significant queues at border control mean that thousands of visitors have regularly faced the longest queues in London to get their passports checked.”
He spoke out a week after his British Airways counterpart Alex Cruz urged the government to deal with Heathrow’s “border farce”.
The boss of Heathrow, John Holland-Kaye, also urged action on Friday to cut long queues at immigration as he reported that a record 7.8 million travellers used the airport last month.
A Home Office spokesman said: “The vast majority of people who arrive at Heathrow get through the border within our service standards.
“But we understand the frustration for those who have experienced longer waits and remain fully committed to working with our partners to reduce waiting times as far as is possible.
“At the same time, we will not compromise the essential checks we carry out at the border which keep our country safe.
“We are making sure Border Force has the resources it needs and are deploying 200 additional staff at Heathrow over the summer.”