Carriers spent two weeks leaning on ‘extraordinary circumstances’ to dodge EC261. On May 8, the Commission published guidance that said no in writing.
Behind the scenes, airlines argued the jet fuel shortage was an extraordinary circumstance under Article 5(3) of the Regulation, the language that exempts carriers from compensation when something outside their control causes the cancellation. The argument is not crazy on its face. The Strait of Hormuz disruption is geopolitical. Refinery output (or in this case, product delivery) is not within any airline’s control. If a war counts as extraordinary, why would not the second-order fuel shortage?
That was the airlines’ position. It was almost certainly going to end up in litigation at the Court of Justice of the European Union by the fall. AirHelp and other passenger-rights firms were preparing for a long fight. EC261 Jet Fuel Cancellations hadn’t been tested but now we have a clear indication.
A great solo travel tip spotted this week on Live and Let's Fly.
