How do I know if my flight was cancelled/delayed due to "extraordinary circumstances", as defined in EC 261/2004?
EU Regulation 261/2004 mentions "extraordinary circumstances" several times as a condition under which airlines are not obligated to pay out compensation:
(12) The trouble and inconvenience to passengers caused by cancellation of flights should also be reduced. This should be achieved by inducing carriers to inform passengers of cancellations before the scheduled time of departure and in addition to offer them reasonable re-routing, so that the passengers can make other arrangements. Air carriers should compensate passengers if they fail to do this, except when the cancellation occurs in extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken.
(14) As under the Montreal Convention, obligations on operating air carriers should be limited or excluded in cases where an event has been caused by extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken. Such circumstances may, in particular, occur in cases of political instability, meteorological conditions incompatible with the operation of the flight concerned, security risks, unexpected flight safety shortcomings and strikes that affect the operation of an operating air carrier.
(15) Extraordinary circumstances should be deemed to exist where the impact of an air traffic management decision in relation to a particular aircraft on a particular day gives rise to a long delay, an overnight delay, or the cancellation of one or more flights by that aircraft, even though all reasonable measures had been taken by the air carrier concerned to avoid the delays or cancellations.
- An operating air carrier shall not be obliged to pay compensation in accordance with Article 7, if it can prove that the cancellation is caused by extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken.
How can one know if their particular reason for delay/cancellation counts as "extraordinary circumstances"? Is there a list of all court cases related to EU 261/2004 that would help travelers evaluate their particular scenario?
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How do you check to see if my flight has been Cancelled?
Flight tracking apps and websites \u2014 FlightAware, Flightstats, and Flight Radar all track the departure and arrival of most commercial flights and are, without doubt, the best websites to check if your flight has been delayed, cancelled or diverted.What is extraordinary circumstances flight cancellation?
The term 'extraordinary circumstances' may apply to a number of scenarios where the delay or flight cancellation was caused by something out of the ordinary; things like: Acts of terrorism or sabotage. Security risks. Extreme weather conditions e.g. volcanic ash cloud. Political or civil unrest.How do I know if my flight is delayed or Cancelled?
On your departure date, check your flight status before heading to the airport. You can check for flight cancellations and delays online using the airline's app or a third-party app like FlightAware Flight Tracker (which also offers a website) or TripIt Pro.How can I find out why my flight was delayed?
If an airline doesn't allow for tracking of an inbound aircraft, there are many apps and services now available to display the route and flight status. Then, by visiting the Federal Aviation Administration's flight delay website, fly.faa.gov, users can see the country's largest airports and their current conditions.Introduction to Denied Boarding, Delayed or Cancelled Flight Rights - 261/2004 - Part 1
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