Strike cancelled or delayed your flight? When you get €250 to €600

For years airlines argued that any strike was beyond their control. The EU Court of Justice disagreed twice:

• In 2018, it ruled that a "wildcat" strike, where many crew members called in sick at once after a surprise restructuring announcement, was not extraordinary (Krüsemann).
• In 2021, it ruled that a strike called by a union of the airline's own staff, for demands such as pay, is "inherent in the normal exercise of the airline's activity" and therefore not extraordinary either (SAS, case C-28/20). Negotiating with its staff is part of running an airline.

So when your easyJet, Ryanair, Air France or Lufthansa flight is cancelled because that airline's pilots or cabin crew are on strike, you are owed compensation like for any other cancellation, unless you were told 14 days or more before.

A strike by air traffic controllers or by airport staff who work for the airport or the state is outside the airline's control. The European Commission's guidelines treat these as typical extraordinary circumstances, and airlines usually do not owe compensation.

Two things are worth knowing:

• The airline must still take reasonable measures. It cannot cancel more flights than the strike requires, and it must try to rebook you quickly. If only some airlines cancelled while others flew the same route, ask why.
• French air traffic control strikes affect flights that don't even land in France, because many flights between the UK, Spain and Italy cross French airspace. Those cancellations are usually also treated as extraordinary.

Whoever is on strike, the airline's duties under the regulation don't stop:

• A choice between a full refund within 7 days and a new flight to your destination, as soon as possible or later at your convenience. A strike is no reason to make you wait several days if other airlines, trains or buses can get you there sooner. See refund or new flight.
• Meals and refreshments while you wait, from 2 hours for short flights.
• A hotel and transport to it if you are stuck overnight. The Court confirmed that this duty applies even in exceptional events (McDonagh, 2013). See stranded overnight.

If the airline doesn't provide them, pay what is reasonable, keep receipts and claim the costs back.

Most strikes are announced days or weeks ahead. That changes one thing: the notice you get.

• If the airline cancels your flight 14 days or more before departure, no compensation is due, whoever is striking.
• From 7 to 13 days, or less than 7 days before, compensation depends on the new flight offered, as for any cancellation. See the notice rules.

An announced strike by the airline's own staff does not become extraordinary because it was announced: the SAS ruling concerned a strike announced in advance.

After a strike, airlines often cancel more flights to put aircraft and crews back in place, sometimes the day after the strike ends. The cause of those cancellations is still the strike: if it was a strike by the airline's own staff, compensation is owed; if it was an air traffic control strike, the airline will usually argue it is not, but it must show the knock-on cancellations could not reasonably be avoided.

1. Check whether your flight is affected on our strike calendar and in the airline's app. Sign up for alerts to hear about new strikes.
2. Don't cancel your own ticket. If you cancel before the airline does, you lose your right to a refund and to compensation. Wait for the airline's decision.
3. If the airline offers a free change, compare it with what you'd get if the flight were cancelled. Accepting a voluntary change may limit your claim.
4. If your flight is cancelled, choose between a refund and a new flight. Ask about other airlines and trains if the airline's next flight is days away.
5. Keep the cancellation message, which shows when you were told and often why.

If you are at the airport when a strike hits, go to the airline's desk or app to rebook, ask for meal vouchers and a hotel if needed, keep every receipt, and photograph the departures board. Our airport pages show live departures and hotels near the main airports.

1. Find out who was on strike. Our strike page for that day says it; otherwise, ask the airline in writing. "Industrial action" without detail is not enough.
2. Check your amount with our free check.
3. Claim from the airline, with our free claim letter, which cites the SAS ruling when the airline's own staff were on strike.
4. If the airline refuses, see what to do when the airline says no.

Airlines often reject strike claims at first. If you would rather someone else handled it, compare the claim services by what they leave you.

If your flight was part of a package, the tour operator must rebook or refund the package, but the compensation for a strike by the airline's own staff is still owed by the airline that operated the flight.