"We regret to inform you that your flight was affected by extraordinary circumstances beyond our control." This sentence is the single most common response passengers receive when they claim compensation under Regulation (EC) 261/2004. Sometimes it is legitimate. Very often, it is not. Knowing where the line falls is what turns a rejected claim into a paid one.
What Article 5(3) actually says
An air carrier is not required to pay the fixed compensation if it can prove that the cancellation or long delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken.
Three consequences flow from that wording:
- The burden of proof lies entirely with the airline. You never have to prove that there was no storm.
- The defence is an exception, and the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) interprets exceptions narrowly.
- Naming an extraordinary event is not enough. The carrier must also show it took all reasonable measures to limit the consequences.
The two cumulative tests
Since the landmark Wallentin-Hermann ruling (C-549/07), an event qualifies as extraordinary only if it meets both conditions at once:
- it is not inherent in the normal exercise of the carrier's activity; and
- it is beyond the carrier's actual control.
An incident can therefore be rare, expensive and completely unexpected and still fail the test, because it belongs to the ordinary operational risks of running an airline.
The most common rejections — and why many collapse
Technical faults
This is the most frequently used and the weakest argument. The CJEU held in Wallentin-Hermann and again in van der Lans (C-257/14) that a technical problem appearing unexpectedly, discovered during maintenance, or caused by a failure to maintain the aircraft is inherent in air transport. It does not exempt the airline. Only narrow situations qualify — a hidden manufacturing defect disclosed by the manufacturer, or sabotage and acts of terrorism.
Strikes by the airline's own staff
Industrial action by the carrier's own pilots or cabin crew is, as a rule, not extraordinary. The Court confirmed this for a spontaneous "wildcat" strike (Krüsemann, C-195/17) and then for a lawful strike called by an internal trade union (Airhelp v SAS, C-28/20): labour disputes are part of normal business management. External strikes — air traffic control, airport ground handlers, customs — generally do qualify as extraordinary.
Vague weather claims
A severe thunderstorm, heavy snow or fog that closes an airport is genuinely extraordinary. But a rejection letter that simply says "adverse weather", with no date, no airport and no reference to air traffic restrictions, proves nothing. If comparable flights in the same time window departed normally, the argument loses most of its weight.
Knock-on delays and aircraft rotation
"Late arrival of the incoming aircraft" is not in itself an extraordinary circumstance. The original event must qualify, and the carrier must show it took reasonable steps to stop the delay from cascading through the rotation (TAP, C-74/19). Building a schedule with almost no turnaround buffer is a commercial decision, not bad luck.
Bird strikes and runway debris
A collision with a bird (Pešková, C-315/15) or foreign object damage on the runway (Germanwings, C-501/17) does count as extraordinary. Even so, the airline must show it reacted promptly: immediate inspection, a qualified engineer mobilised, a re-routing option considered. An eight-hour delay following a routine post-strike check is rarely defensible.
Disruptive passengers
Unruly behaviour on board can be extraordinary, unless the carrier contributed to the situation or failed to respond appropriately (TAP, C-74/19).
The forgotten test: reasonable measures
Even where an extraordinary event is proven, the airline is only released if it shows the three-hour threshold could not have been avoided. Useful questions:
- Was re-routing on another flight, including with a competing carrier, available the same day?
- Was a standby aircraft or reserve crew available at that base?
- Is the final delay proportionate to the event described?
A large share of successful claims are won on this point rather than on the classification of the event itself.
What the airline still owes you regardless
Extraordinary circumstances never remove the duty of care: meals and refreshments proportionate to the waiting time, hotel accommodation and transfers where an overnight stay is required, and means of communication. Nor do they remove the right to a refund or re-routing when a flight is cancelled.
The compensation framework in brief
- €250 for flights of 1,500 km or less;
- €400 for intra-EU flights over 1,500 km and other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km;
- €600 for flights over 3,500 km outside the EU.
Eligibility requires a delay of at least 3 hours at the final destination, a cancellation notified less than 14 days before departure, or denied boarding due to overbooking. Flights operated up to 3 years ago can still be claimed.
How to respond to a rejection
A rejection letter is not the end of the road. Ask in writing for the precise nature of the event, its date and time, and the measures taken to limit the disruption. Keep boarding passes, airline emails and SMS notifications, photos of departure boards, and receipts for expenses. Cross-check against publicly available traffic and weather data for that day.
At Airlines Quick Refund we review rejection reasons free of charge, test them against EU case law and handle the amicable claim process with the carrier. Our 35% commission is only charged if the claim succeeds — no result, no fee.
Think your rejection was unjustified? Check your flight in under two minutes with our compensation calculator.