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Air France delayed flight compensation

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Quick answer

If your Air France flight reached its final destination 3 hours or more after the scheduled arrival time, EU261 compensation of €250, €400 or €600 per passenger (by distance) is due unless Air France proves extraordinary circumstances. The departure delay does not matter — the arrival time, measured when the doors open, does. Below 3 hours you still have care rights.

Operating carrier

Air France AF / AFR · France

EU/EEA-licensed carrier — Regulation 261/2004 applies to all its flights departing from the EU/EEA and to its flights into the EU/EEA.

Applicable regimes: Air France HOP, Transavia France

Where to send your claim

Postal address
Air France, Service Client, TSA 21235, 75564 Paris Cedex 12, France
Dispute-resolution scheme
Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV)

Delay compensation on typical Air France routes

  • Paris → New York (5,834 km)€600(€300 3–4 h)
  • New York → Paris (5,834 km)€600(€300 3–4 h)
  • Paris → Amsterdam (399 km)€250
  • Paris → Nice (676 km)€250
  • Paris → Réunion (9,370 km)€400
  • Paris → Athens (2,108 km)€400

Full amount from 4 hours of arrival delay; on flights over 3,500 km the amount in brackets applies between 3 and 4 hours.

Direct answer

Short answer
If your Air France flight arrived at its final destination 3 hours or more late, EU261 compensation is due per passenger unless Air France proves an extraordinary circumstance.
Amount
€250–€600per passenger on Air France’s typical routes, by distance
Why
The amount is fixed by the distance of the flight, not the fare; the delay is measured when the doors open at the final destination (Sturgeon, Germanwings v Henning). Air France can only refuse by proving the cause was extraordinary and unavoidable.
What can change it
  • Air France proves an extraordinary circumstance for your flight — weather, ATC, a third-party strike — and that it could not avoid the delay
  • The arrival delay was under 3 hours: care and expenses may still be due, fixed compensation is not
  • Another airline operated the aircraft: the operating carrier owes the compensation, not Air France
  • Over 3,500 km outside the intra-EU cap with a 3–4 hour delay: the amount is halved
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Official source
Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights — European Parliament and CouncilLast checked against the source on 23 September 2026

Can Air France passengers claim compensation?

Yes. Air France holds a EU/EEA licence, so Regulation 261 covers its flights departing from the EU/EEA, the UK or Switzerland and its flights into them: €250–€600 per passenger for an arrival delay of 3 hours or more, a cancellation announced under 14 days ahead, or denied boarding — unless the airline proves an extraordinary circumstance.

Does this apply to your flight?

Air France flight affected?

A few short questions — no flight number needed yet. You get a preliminary result on the facts you give; the full check confirms it from the itinerary.

Already known from this page

  • Air France
  • Delayed

How late did you arrive at your final destination?

Count the delay when the doors opened at your final destination, not the departure delay.

Air France delays: what is specific

Air France is a French (EU) carrier: EU261 covers every Air France departure and every Air France flight into the EU, including from North America, Africa and Asia. Long-haul delays into or out of Paris pay €600 per passenger from 4 hours of arrival delay (€300 between 3 and 4 hours); on a single-ticket connection through Charles de Gaulle the delay at your final destination and the distance of the whole journey count.

French air-traffic-control strikes are Air France’s most frequent defence and are generally extraordinary — but only for flights actually restricted. Ask for the specific ATC restriction and the flights that did operate that day. Domestic and regional flights may be operated by Air France HOP under AF numbers, with identical rights. Flights to Réunion, Guadeloupe and Martinique count as intra-EU for the distance band (outermost regions), which caps the amount at €400.

Air France belongs to the Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV) scheme, free for passengers, which is the escalation step if Air France refuses.

How the 3 hours are measured on Air France flights

The delay that counts is the arrival delay at your final destination, measured when at least one aircraft door opens — not the departure delay, the touchdown time or the block-on time. Compare it with the scheduled arrival on your booking. A Air France flight that leaves 3 hours 30 late but makes up time to arrive 2 hours 50 late is not compensable; one that leaves on time and arrives 3 hours late is.

Domestic and regional flights may be operated by Air France HOP (A5). Check the operating carrier on your boarding pass: the rules follow the airline that flew the aircraft, not the one that sold the ticket.

How much Air France owes for a delay

Under EU261 the amount depends only on the great-circle distance of the flight (or of the whole journey on a single booking), never on the ticket price: €250, €400 or €600 per passenger. On flights over 3,500 km Air France may halve the amount (€300 instead of €600) when the arrival delay is between 3 and 4 hours; from 4 hours the full amount applies. The table above shows the amounts on Air France’s typical routes.

Care while you wait

From 2 hours of delay (short flights), 3 hours (medium) or 4 hours (long) Air France must offer meals and refreshments in proportion to the wait, two phone calls or e-mails, and a hotel with transport if you are kept overnight. If it does not, keep receipts for reasonable expenses and claim them separately — they come on top of the fixed compensation. After 5 hours you may also abandon the trip and claim a full refund of the unused ticket.

What Air France may argue

Only extraordinary circumstances exempt Air France from paying: severe weather, air-traffic-control restrictions or strikes, security incidents, bird strikes, external strikes. Technical faults, crew shortages, late inbound aircraft from an earlier rotation and Air France’s own staff strikes are not extraordinary. The burden of proof is on Air France: ask for the precise cause of your flight’s delay and the measures it took, and treat a bare “operational reasons” as no answer.

How to claim a delay from Air France

  1. Note the actual arrival time (arrivals board, flight-tracker screenshot, Air France’s own notification).
  2. Ask Air France in writing for the reason for the delay.
  3. Submit the claim through Air France’s official channel (https://www.airfrance.fr/information/legal/passenger-rights), or by post to Air France, Service Client, TSA 21235, 75564 Paris Cedex 12, France, quoting the booking reference, the flight, the date, the arrival delay and the amount per passenger.
  4. If Air France refuses or does not reply within 8 weeks, escalate to Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV); a court claim remains available within the limitation period of the departure country.

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Frequently asked questions

How much does Air France pay for a 3-hour delay?

€250 per passenger on flights up to 1,500 km, €400 between 1,500 and 3,500 km and €600 beyond 3,500 km — the same fixed amounts as any airline under EU261. On long-haul flights Air France may pay €300 when the arrival delay is under 4 hours.

Does Air France pay compensation for a 2-hour delay?

No fixed compensation is due below 3 hours of arrival delay. From 2 hours (short flights) Air France still owes care: meals, refreshments and communication, and a hotel if the wait runs overnight. Keep receipts if it does not provide them.

Is a delay caused by a late inbound aircraft compensable on Air France?

Usually yes. A knock-on delay from an earlier rotation is only exempt if Air France proves the original cause was extraordinary and that it could not have avoided the delay with reasonable measures such as a spare aircraft or crew.

How long do I have to claim a Air France delay?

It depends on the country of departure, not on Air France: typically between 1 and 6 years (for example 6 years in the UK and Ireland, 5 in France and Spain, 3 in Germany, 2 in the Netherlands). Check the country page for your departure airport.

Sources

  1. Court of Justice of the European UnionCase C-28/20 Airhelp v Scandinavian Airlines — a strike organised by the airline's own staff is not an extraordinary circumstance
  2. Court of Justice of the European UnionCase C-559/16 Bossen v Brussels Airlines — the distance is the great-circle distance between the first departure and the final destination
  3. Court of Justice of the European UnionCase C-11/11 Air France v Folkerts — compensation for connecting flights depends on the delay at the final destination
  4. Court of Justice of the European UnionJoined Cases C-402/07 and C-432/07 Sturgeon v Condor and Böck v Air France — passengers of flights delayed by three hours or more may claim compensation
  5. Court of Justice of the European UnionCase C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia — technical problems are not, as such, extraordinary circumstances
  6. European CommissionInterpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (2016/C 214/04)
  7. European Parliament and CouncilRegulation (EC) No 261/2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights

Last legally reviewed: 12 September 2026 · Content updated: 12 September 2026

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