Why disruptions are common at Paris-Orly
Orly is France's second-busiest airport, handling more than 30 million passengers a year across four terminals (Orly 1, 2, 3 and 4) with only two main runways in regular use. It also operates under a strict night curfew between 11:30 pm and 6:00 am. The result is a tightly packed schedule: a delay in the morning tends to cascade through the day, and a flight that cannot depart before the curfew may be cancelled outright or diverted to another airport.
Whether you fly with Air France, Transavia, easyJet, Vueling, Iberia, ITA Airways, Air Corsica, Royal Air Maroc or Tunisair, European Regulation EC 261/2004 gives you clear, enforceable rights. Here is how to use them.
Step 1: what to do while you are still at the airport
The first few hours matter most. Practical reflexes:
- Get the reason in writing. Ask the ground staff, or use the airline's chat or email channel, to state why the flight is delayed or cancelled: technical issue, late incoming aircraft, weather, air traffic control, strike. This wording will later determine whether compensation is due.
- Claim your right to care. After 2 hours (short flights), 3 hours (medium-haul) or 4 hours (long-haul), the airline must provide meals, refreshments, two phone calls or emails, and hotel accommodation plus transfers if you have to wait overnight. This applies regardless of the cause, including extraordinary circumstances.
- Choose between refund and rerouting. If your flight is cancelled, you are entitled to either a full refund of the unused ticket or re-routing to your final destination at the earliest opportunity. Airlines frequently rebook Orly passengers via Paris-Charles de Gaulle: the transfer cost must be covered by the carrier.
- Keep everything. Boarding passes, booking confirmation, airline emails and SMS, photos of the departure board, restaurant and taxi receipts.
If nothing is offered on the spot, pay reasonable expenses yourself and keep the invoices — they are reimbursable.
Step 2: check whether compensation is due
EC 261/2004 covers every flight departing from Orly, whatever the airline's nationality, and every flight arriving at Orly operated by an EU carrier. Fixed compensation amounts depend on flight distance:
- €250 for flights up to 1,500 km (Orly–Nice, Orly–Barcelona, Orly–Toulouse);
- €400 for intra-EU flights over 1,500 km and other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km (Orly–Lisbon, Orly–Athens, Orly–Algiers);
- €600 for flights over 3,500 km outside the EU (Orly–Pointe-à-Pitre, Orly–Fort-de-France, Orly–Réunion, Orly–New York).
You may be entitled to this compensation if:
- you arrived at your final destination at least 3 hours late — the reference is the moment the aircraft doors open, not the take-off time;
- your flight was cancelled less than 14 days before departure, unless the airline offered re-routing within very narrow time limits;
- you were denied boarding due to overbooking despite checking in on time with valid travel documents.
Claims can be filed for flights operated up to 3 years ago, so disrupted 2023 and 2024 journeys are usually still within reach.
Step 3: separating genuine extraordinary circumstances from excuses
An airline is released from paying compensation only if the disruption was caused by an external, unavoidable event. Typical Orly scenarios:
- Usually exempt: severe weather (fog, thunderstorms, snow), air traffic controller strikes, airspace closures, security incidents, bird strikes.
- Usually not exempt: most technical failures, which courts consider inherent to normal airline operations; strikes by the airline's own staff; crew rostering problems; knock-on delays caused by poor fleet management.
Vague explanations such as "operational reasons" or "ATC restrictions" are not enough. The burden of proof lies with the carrier, which must also show it took all reasonable measures to avoid the disruption.
Step 4: filing a claim that gets results
Send a written claim to the airline including your booking reference, flight number, date, and supporting documents. Keep two requests clearly separate: reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses (meals, hotel, transport) and the fixed compensation, which does not depend on proving financial loss. Vouchers or air miles offered instead of cash can always be refused — you are entitled to a bank transfer.
If the airline stays silent or issues a poorly justified refusal, a documented follow-up and, in France, a referral to the travel and tourism ombudsman remain effective amicable routes. Airlines Quick Refund handles these amicable steps for you, with a 35% success fee only: nothing to pay if the claim does not succeed.
Check your Orly flight in two minutes
A delayed, cancelled or overbooked Orly flight in the past three years can be worth up to €600 per passenger, including children who occupied a paid seat. Run a free eligibility check on our compensation calculator — a few details about your flight are enough to estimate what you may be owed.