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Interesting article re: flight delay

Posted by (Anaheim, CA, USA) on

The article can be found at Airfarewatchdog.com
Aviation.com Wed Apr 30, 2:30 PM ET

I've highlighted some of the article

Consumers actually have some rights. These forward-thinking rules also apply to non-Europeans who are flying out of Europe (but not those flying to Europe, unfortunately). They put to shame the paltry protections offered in the U.S.

These regulations are spelled out on the European Commission's air transport Web site. Once there, click on "Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February, 2004," which is a PDF file. This regulation was put in force on Feb. 17, 2005. If you're traveling from a European airport you'd do well do download this document, print it out, carry it with you, and present it to your airline in the event of a cancellation or lengthy delay.

Exceptions and legal challenges

Deep in the EC web site, however, there is this disclaimer: "Airlines are not obliged to pay compensation if they can prove that the cancellation is caused by extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken (e.g. political instability, meteorological conditions, security risks, unexpected flight safety shortcomings, wild cat strikes) - safety remains the most important right of each passenger! In these cases, the burden of proof lies with the airline, and passengers still have the right to information, assistance and re-routing."

So, presumably, the airline has to show you some kind of proof that weather or a strike caused the delay.

Needless to say, some European airlines and airline associations were not happy with this regulation and challenged it in court, but so far they have been unsuccessful.

Posted by
1455 posts

(continued)
What you're owed for cancellations and delays

The following compensation rule (paragraph 1) applies if your flight is cancelled fewer than seven days before departure and you're offered an alternate flight that is scheduled to depart more than one hour later than originally scheduled, and that flight arrives more than two hours later than your original flight; or if your original flight's departure is delayed for two or more hours:

1.(a) euros250 for all flights of 1,500 kilometers or less [note: at the time of this post 1 euro is worth about $1.45; a kilometre is about 0.62 miles] (b) euros400 for all intra-Community flights of more than 1 500 kilometres, and for all other flights between 1 500 and 3 500 kilometres; (c) euros600 for all flights not falling under (a) or (b). In determining the distance, the basis shall be the last destination at which the denial of boarding or cancellation will delay the passenger's arrival after the scheduled time.

Posted by
1455 posts

(continued)
More exceptions

These regulations may not apply if:

As stated earlier, the airline can prove that the cancellation was caused by "extraordinary circumstances") by which we assume they mean strikes, air traffic control meltdowns, weather, and the like You are traveling on a free ticket other than a frequent-flyer ticket You're informed of a cancellation at least two weeks before departure You're informed of a cancellation one to two weeks before departure and offered re-routing that gets you to your destination no more than four hours late You're informed of the cancellation between fewer than 7 days before departure and you are offered rerouting that gets you to your destination fewer than two hours late.

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Posted by
808 posts

It is good to be informed. However, a lot of it is subject to interpretation. Just be careful how you present this information. Attitude is everything. A surprising number of travellers think that it is okay to verbally abuse Airline Personnel when delays or cancellations happen. It's all part of the Air travel experience. He who screams the loudest does not win.

I agree completely with the above..."Safety is the most important right of each Passenger" (and Crew).

Safety will always trump service...And rightly so. If I see something unsafe in my pre-flight safety checks I must by law report it. Inspections cause delays but I refuse to risk my life or the lives of my Crew or Passengers. Some people refuse to understand that.

The primary role of the Flight and Cabin Crew is Safety and Security of all souls on board the Aircraft. If that Plane is not deamed safe by any Crewmember we go nowhere until it has been inspected and authorized as Airworthy!
Unfortunately, this infuriates some Passengers. I'd love to tell them it's better to arrive home carrying their bag and not wearing one. But I'd probably be in a little trouble for that...:-)

F/A

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