Austrian Airlines Compensation. Check Your Rights.

How much can you claim for a flight delay or cancellation?

The main factors that will determine the amount of your compensation claim are the length of your journey and the duration of the delay.

If your flight was shorter than 1,500 km, you could claim €250 for your disruption. If it spanned between 1,500 and 3,500 km, your Austrian delay compensation rises to €400. Finally, if your flight spanned more than 3,500 km, you could claim up to €600.

Am I entitled to compensation?

EU Regulation 261/2004 establishes the right to compensation in case of a flight disruption. If you have experienced a flight delay, cancellation, denied boarding or you have missed an important connecting flight, you may be eligible for a refund.

The regulation applies to air passengers who are departing from an EU airport, or from a non-EU airport but with an EU airline. Since Austrian Airlines is registered in Austria, all of its flights would be subject to the provisions of EC261.

Passengers must note that flight compensation is subject to specific conditions. But you could easily find out if your flight is eligible for compensation using our compensation calculator.

Is My Flight Eligible?

There are cases in which Austrian could not have taken any measures to prevent a flight delay or cancellation such as bad weather, airport traffic control restrictions, bird strikes and airport personnel strikes.

Under these circumstances a disruption would not have been the airline’s fault and Austrian can refuse paying compensation. Learn more below.

Austrian Flight Delay

To claim delayed flight compensation, two basic conditions need to be met:

• You reached your final destination at least 3 hours late
• The delay was not caused by any extraordinary circumstances

Airlines are required to minimise the duration and effects of any flight delay or cancellation. However, in the presence of any extraordinary circumstances, surrounding the flight, the resulting disruptions would be outside Austrian’s responsibilities and capabilities to mitigate.

Here is a list of the most common cases of extraordinary circumstances:

• Bad weather (e.g. snowstorms, low visibility, strong crosswinds)
• Bird strikes
• Runway closures and air traffic control restrictions
• Airport personnel strikes
• Union strikes
• A medical emergency
• Political or social unrest

Claim Delay Compensation

Technical issues, however, are not considered exceptional. It is the airline’s responsibility to monitor their aircraft to prevent the occurrence of mechanical faults. 

Therefore, air passengers may be eligible for an Austrian Airlines flight delay compensation claim.

In addition, to be eligible for compensation from the airline, your flight needs to have arrived at its destination airport with a delay of over three hours. Flight delay is calculated as the difference between the actual and the scheduled time of arrival.

In some cases a flight may depart more than three hours late but part of that delay could be made up for during the flight. If, as a result, the delay upon arrival is less than 3 hours passengers would not be entitled to Austrian Аirlines delay compensation.

Austrian Flight Cancellation

Аirlines cancel flights for a variety of reasons. In general, they often attempt to rebook passengers onto a different flight with no additional charge. According to EC261, in the event of an Austrian Airlines flight cancellation, you can choose between flying on a later flight which suits your schedule or you could decide not to fly and receive a full refund for the ticket price.

Besides a refund of your ticket or an alternative flight, you could also be entitled to Austrian Airlines cancellation compensation.

If you experienced a flight cancellation, you may be entitled to compensation if a few basic conditions are met:

• You were notified of the cancellation less than 14 days before the scheduled departure
• The replacement flight to your final destination arrived more than 4 hours late.
• Your Austrian Airlines cancellation was not caused by any extraordinary circumstances

In most cases, Austrian Airlines flight cancellations would occur on the day of the flight.

If the airline has informed you of the cancellation less than a week before departure, you could claim compensation of up to €600 if your alternate flight arrives more than 2 hours late.

We can help you in the event of a cancelled flight. Apply for compensation with SkyRefund.

Is My Flight Eligible?

The airline is obliged to provide its passengers with an alternate flight or a full refund for the total ticket cost in the event of a cancelled flight. This is true even if the reason for the Austrian cancellation is related to bad weather or extraordinary circumstances.

Finally, it is important to make a distinction between flight delays and cancellations as they are different things from a legal point of view and compensation eligibility is determined differently.

• Flight Delay Compensation
• Flight Cancellation Compensation

What if I cancelled my оwn flight?

Depending of the type of the purchased ticket Austrian Airlines’ website provides an option to rebook tickets in exchange of a rebooking fee and a handling charge. The general rule is that you can change the ticket in the same class or the airline could potentially upgrade the ticket to a higher fare class. If Austrian cancelled the flight you no longer have to pay a rebooking fee.

Denied Boarding

If in case of an overbooked flight, Austrian involuntarily denies your boarding, you are presented with two options:

1. Get a full ticket refund and a return ticket to your original point of departure
2. Get an alternate flight to your final destination - either as soon as possible or at a later date

In addition, you can submit a claim for Austrian Airlines overbooking compensation. According to EC261, you may be eligible for the same amount as for delays and cancellations - up to €600!

Check Compensation

About Austrian Airlines AG

Austrian Airlines’ are located at Vienna - Schwechat where its main hub and headquarters are based. Often shortened to Austrian, it is the flag carrier of Austria. The company was founded after the merger of Air Austria and Austrian Airways in 1957. At a later stage, the company was taken over by the German Lufthansa Group and joined Star Alliance during the early 2000. From 2012 to 2015 all Austrian Airlines flights were operated by its subsidiary Tyrolean Airways. Austrian Airlines flies to various destinations in Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East. The airline also operates from Vienna to a number of domestic Austrian airports. In 2014 around 11.2 million passengers flew with the company.

Austrian Airlines Flight Related Problems

The company has an 86% percent on-time flight record. Only 2% of the total flights were cancelled while 12% were delayed.

Still wondering about your rights? As a claim company, we can help you get your Austrian flight delay and cancellation compensation and claim up to €600.

Austrian rankings

Skytrax - a leading airline ranking site has given Austrian Airlines a cumulative rating of 6/10. This score is based on the quality of the company’s onboard service. Seat comfort, food, beverages, staff and cabin crew are some of the main points included in the ranking.

Tips and general baggage information

• Place a clear, visible mark with your name and address on each and every bag
• Avoid placing valuable items (money, jewelry), electronics (laptops, PCs, etc) in your checked baggage. Instead you can keep your personal items in the hand baggage
• Always double check the baggage allowance that is stated on your booking
• In case your baggage exceeds the maximum total dimensions, please inform the airline in advance