Extraordinary Circumstances: When Airlines Don't Have to Pay (And When They're Lying)

Your flight was delayed six hours. You missed a wedding, a business meeting, a holiday you'd been planning for months. You file a compensation claim under EU Regulation 261/2004, expecting the €250–€600 you're legally owed. And then the airline writes back with two magic words: extraordinary circumstances.

Claim denied.

Here's the thing — airlines use "extraordinary circumstances" the way a toddler uses "but I didn't mean to." They throw it at everything, hoping you'll go away. And most people do. But most of the time, they're lying.

Let's break down what actually qualifies as extraordinary circumstances, what doesn't, and how to fight back when an airline tries to weasel out of paying you.

What EU Law Actually Says About Extraordinary Circumstances

Under EC 261/2004, airlines don't have to pay compensation if the disruption was caused by "extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken."

The regulation doesn't provide an exhaustive list. But decades of court rulings — from national courts to the European Court of Justice — have established clear boundaries. The test is two-fold:

1. Was the event outside the airline's normal activity?
2. Was it beyond the airline's actual control?

Both conditions must be met. Not one. Both.

What Actually Counts as Extraordinary Circumstances

Let's be fair. There are genuine situations where an airline shouldn't be expected to pay compensation. These are real extraordinary circumstances that courts have consistently upheld:

Severe Weather Events

We're not talking about a bit of rain. We're talking about:

• Volcanic ash clouds (like the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption)
• Hurricanes and typhoons affecting flight paths
• Extreme snowstorms that shut down entire airports
• Dense fog that drops visibility below safe landing minimums

Key point: The weather must actually prevent safe flight operations. Airlines can't claim "bad weather" when flights at the same airport were operating normally. If other carriers flew the same route that day, the weather excuse collapses.

Air Traffic Control Restrictions and Strikes

ATC strikes — particularly common in France, Italy, and Greece — are genuinely outside airline control. When air traffic controllers walk off the job, there's nothing a carrier can do.

Similarly, ATC-imposed slot restrictions due to airspace capacity aren't the airline's fault. These are legitimate extraordinary circumstances.

Security Threats

Bomb threats, airport evacuations, acts of terrorism, political instability requiring airspace closure — these all qualify. No reasonable person would argue an airline should ignore a security threat to keep flights on time.

Airport Closures

When an airport shuts down due to a runway incursion, structural damage, or external emergency, airlines can't fly. That's genuine force majeure.

Bird Strikes (Sometimes)

This one's nuanced. The European Court of Justice ruled in the Pešková case (C-315/15) that bird strikes can constitute extraordinary circumstances — but the airline must still prove it took all reasonable measures. If the delay was extended because the airline didn't have contingency plans, they can still owe compensation for the excess delay.

What Airlines Falsely Claim as Extraordinary Circumstances

Now here's where it gets infuriating. Airlines routinely reject legitimate claims by citing "extraordinary circumstances" for things that are absolutely, unequivocally their problem. Courts have slapped them down repeatedly, but they keep trying because most passengers don't fight back.

Technical Issues and Mechanical Failures

This is the big one. Airlines love to claim that a mechanical problem with the aircraft was "extraordinary." Courts have demolished this argument over and over.

In the landmark Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia case (C-549/07), the European Court of Justice ruled definitively: technical problems are inherent to the normal activity of air transport. They are not extraordinary circumstances.

Think about it. Planes are machines. Machines break down. Airlines know this. They're expected to maintain their fleet, have spare parts, and plan for the inevitable. When a hydraulic system fails or an engine sensor malfunctions, that's the airline's problem — not yours.

The only exception would be a defect caused by an act of sabotage or a hidden manufacturing defect affecting an entire fleet (like undiscovered design flaws). Routine wear and tear? Normal maintenance issues? Not extraordinary. Period.

Crew Shortages and Staffing Problems

"We didn't have enough crew" is not extraordinary. It's bad planning.

Airlines are responsible for managing their staff rosters, ensuring adequate standby crew, and having contingency plans for sick calls. Courts have consistently ruled that crew sickness, crew exceeding working hour limits, and general staffing shortages are operational issues — not extraordinary circumstances.

The Krüsemann v TUIfly case (C-195/17) was particularly devastating for airlines. TUIfly tried to claim that a wave of pilot sick calls constituted extraordinary circumstances. The Court said no. Staff management is the airline's responsibility.

Previous Flight Delays (Knock-On Effects)

"The inbound aircraft was delayed" — you've probably heard this one. Airlines love to blame the previous flight, as if that somehow transfers responsibility to the universe rather than to them.

It doesn't. If the delay originated from a non-extraordinary cause (like a technical issue on the earlier leg), the airline can't wash their hands by pointing to the knock-on effect. They should have had contingency aircraft available.

Minor Weather That Didn't Actually Prevent Flying

Airlines sometimes claim weather delays when the actual weather conditions were flyable. Light rain, moderate winds, scattered clouds — these don't ground flights.

If you suspect a bogus weather claim, check the historical weather data for the airport and time in question. If other flights operated normally, the airline's excuse doesn't hold water.

Passenger Disruptions on Previous Flights

An unruly passenger on the previous flight caused a delay? Unless it was a genuine security incident requiring police intervention, this is an operational issue the airline should have managed without cascading delays to your flight.

Staff Strikes (Airline's Own Employees)

Here's an important distinction. ATC strikes are extraordinary. But when the airline's own pilots, cabin crew, or ground staff go on strike? Courts have increasingly ruled these are not extraordinary circumstances.

The reasoning is logical: labour relations are within the airline's sphere of control. They can negotiate, improve conditions, and prevent strikes. When their own employees walk out, that's an internal problem, not an act of God.

How Airlines Get Away With It

Airlines reject claims using "extraordinary circumstances" as a blanket defence for one simple reason: it works on most people.

The typical passenger receives a rejection email full of legal-sounding language, assumes the airline must be right, and gives up. Airlines know this. Some studies suggest that up to 85% of passengers who are owed compensation never claim it — and of those who do, many accept the first rejection.

Airlines also exploit information asymmetry. They know exactly why your flight was delayed. You don't. When they say "extraordinary circumstances," you have no way of independently verifying their claim unless you know where to look.

The Burden of Proof Is on the Airline

Here's what most passengers don't know: under EU law, the airline must prove that extraordinary circumstances existed. The burden of proof is not on you. If they can't provide specific evidence — not just a vague claim — their defence fails.

This means generic rejection letters that say "your flight was affected by extraordinary circumstances" without specific details are legally insufficient.

How to Fight Back Against False Extraordinary Circumstances Claims

Step 1: Don't Accept the First Rejection

Airlines are counting on you to give up. Don't. Reply and demand specific details about the alleged extraordinary circumstances. Ask for:

• The exact nature of the event
• Evidence that it was beyond the airline's control
• Proof that all reasonable measures were taken

Step 2: Cross-Reference Their Claims

Check the facts independently:

• Weather claims: Use historical weather data sites to verify conditions at the relevant airport and time
• ATC strikes: Check news reports for the date in question
• Technical issues: These are almost never extraordinary — push back immediately
• Crew issues: Same — these are the airline's operational responsibility

Step 3: Check If Other Flights Operated Normally

If the airline claims weather or ATC issues, but other flights departed from the same airport around the same time, their claim is undermined. Flight tracking websites can help you verify this.

Step 4: Escalate or Use a Claims Service

If the airline won't budge, you have options:

• National enforcement bodies (like ANAC in Portugal, CAA in the UK, or the relevant authority in the departure country)
• Alternative dispute resolution schemes
• Claims services like FlightOwed that handle the fight for you

At FlightOwed, we've seen every excuse in the book. We know which ones hold up and which ones are nonsense — and we have the legal expertise and data to prove it.

The Bottom Line

"Extraordinary circumstances" is a legitimate legal concept. But airlines have turned it into a catch-all rejection tool, hoping passengers won't know the difference between a genuine force majeure event and the airline's own operational failure.

Now you know the difference.

Technical problems? Not extraordinary. Crew shortages? Not extraordinary. The airline's own staff striking? Increasingly, not extraordinary.

Actual volcanic eruptions, genuine security threats, real ATC strikes? Yes, those are extraordinary. Everything else deserves scrutiny.

Don't let an airline rob you of compensation you're legally owed with two magic words and a form letter. Know your rights, check the facts, and fight back.

Think your claim was wrongly rejected? Check your flight now — it takes 30 seconds, and it's completely free to find out what you're owed.