Air France compensation: EU261 claims for Air France delays and cancellations
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Réponse rapide
Air France is licensed in France, so Regulation 261/2004 applies to all Air France flights leaving the EU/EEA and to all Air France flights arriving in the EU/EEA from third countries. Domestic and European flights pay €250 or €400; long-haul flights into or out of Paris pay €600. Disputes can go to the Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV) after Air France's final answer.
Transporteur effectif
Air France AF / AFR · France
Compagnie titulaire d'une licence UE/EEE — le règlement 261/2004 s'applique à tous ses vols au départ de l'UE/EEE et à ses vols vers l'UE/EEE.
Régimes applicables: Air France HOP, Transavia France
Où envoyer votre réclamation
- Formulaire officiel / centre d'aide
- https://www.airfrance.fr/information/legal/passenger-rights
- Service client
- https://www.airfrance.fr/contact
- Adresse postale
- Air France, Service Client, TSA 21235, 75564 Paris Cedex 12, France
- Dispositif de médiation
- Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV)
Exemples d'indemnisation sur les trajets Air France
- Paris → New York (5 834 km)600 €
- New York → Paris (5 834 km)600 €
- Paris → Amsterdam (399 km)250 €
- Paris → Nice (676 km)250 €
- Paris → Réunion (9 370 km)400 €
- Paris → Athens (2 108 km)400 €
Domestic and regional flights may be operated by Air France HOP (A5).
Les passagers Air France peuvent-ils réclamer une indemnisation ?
Oui. Air France détient une licence UE/EEE ; le règlement 261 couvre donc ses vols au départ de l'UE/EEE, du Royaume-Uni ou de la Suisse et ses vols à destination de ces territoires : 250 €–600 € par passager pour un retard à l'arrivée de 3 heures ou plus, une annulation annoncée moins de 14 jours avant ou un refus d'embarquement — sauf si la compagnie prouve une circonstance extraordinaire.
Cela s'applique-t-il à votre vol ?
Un vol Air France concerné ?
Quelques questions courtes — pas encore besoin du numéro de vol. Vous obtenez un résultat préliminaire sur les faits indiqués ; la vérification complète le confirme à partir de l'itinéraire.
Déjà connu grâce à cette page
- Air France
Qu'est-il arrivé à votre vol ?
Scope for Air France flights
Every Air France departure from Paris, the French regions, other EU airports and the French outermost regions (Réunion, Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana) is covered. Inbound long-haul flights — New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Dakar — are covered too because Air France is an EU carrier. Note the outermost-region cap: Paris–Réunion (about 9,400 km) is an intra-EU flight and pays €400, not €600. Regional flights under AF numbers are often operated by Air France HOP, also an EU carrier.
How to claim from Air France
Air France’s website has a “Compensation and refund” request form under passenger rights (or via “Contact us → Claim”). Provide the booking reference, flight and passengers. Air France answers in writing, usually within 2–6 weeks, and pays by bank transfer on request (it may first propose a voucher; you may decline it).
What Air France typically argues
- Strikes — Air France pilot and cabin-crew strikes are internal and not extraordinary; French ATC strikes (frequent) are external and usually extraordinary, but Air France must prove the link to your flight.
- Weather at Paris-CDG — snow and fog are extraordinary where they genuinely prevented operations.
- Technical faults — not extraordinary.
- Connections at CDG — on a single booking, the delay counts at the final destination.
Escalation
- Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV) — the approved consumer mediator for Air France, HOP and Transavia France. Free; use it within one year of your written complaint, after Air France’s refusal or 60 days of silence. Its recommendations are not binding but are usually followed.
- DGAC — the French enforcement body (Direction Générale de l’Aviation Civile); it investigates systemic breaches and can fine airlines.
- Court: the tribunal judiciaire (small-claims procedure below €5,000, no lawyer needed). The limitation period in France is 5 years.
Typical amounts
Paris–Nice, Paris–Amsterdam and Paris–London pay €250; Paris–Athens, Paris–Tel Aviv and Paris–Marrakesh pay €400; Paris–New York and Paris–Tokyo pay €600 (€300 for 3–4 hour arrival delays). Flights to the French overseas departments pay €400.
Operating facts: Air France
From the registries behind the checker and, where enough cases exist, from claims passengers tracked on Horvera. Nothing here is estimated.
- Official claim channel
- https://www.airfrance.fr/information/legal/passenger-rights
Air France, Service Client, TSA 21235, 75564 Paris Cedex 12, France
Channel verified 14 septembre 2026
- Dispute-resolution body
- Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV)
airline is a member · decisions not binding · accepts cases 60 days after the claim
- Enforcement body (France)
- Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile (DGAC)
The competent body is the one of the departure country; this is the airline's home-country body.
- Time limit for a court claim (France)
60 months
Article 2224 Code civil (five-year general limitation) · loi · 2026-09-14
- Flight lookup on Horvera
- Not on Horvera: there is no live flight-status lookup. You enter the route, the date and the airline; every figure in the check and the letter is stated as your own record.
- Collected from tracked claims
- Not enough verified Horvera cases yet (we publish only from 30 tracked claims sent to this airline).
Straight answers
Each answer is computed from the registries behind the checker and carries its source and verification date.
Can I claim compensation from Air France?
Yes, if your Air France flight arrived three hours or more late, was cancelled with less than 14 days' notice, or you were denied boarding against your will — and the airline cannot prove an extraordinary circumstance. EU261 applies because of the airline's licence and where the flight departed.
- Conditions
- Arrival at the final destination three hours or more after the scheduled time (delay).
- Cancellation announced less than 14 days before departure, and no re-routing inside the legal time windows.
- Confirmed booking, on-time check-in and boarding refused against your will.
- The airline cannot prove an extraordinary circumstance it could not have avoided with all reasonable measures.
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 · Interpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (2016/C 214/04) · verified 12 septembre 2026
How much compensation does Air France pay?
On the example routes for Air France the fixed amount is 250 to 600 EUR per passenger, set by distance, regardless of the ticket price.
- Conditions
- Up to 1,500 km · 1,500–3,500 km · over 3,500 km; intra-EU flights over 3,500 km take the middle amount.
- Over 3,500 km the airline may halve the amount if the arrival delay was under four hours.
- Per passenger, for every passenger on the booking.
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 · Joined Cases C-402/07 and C-432/07 Sturgeon v Condor and Böck v Air France · verified 12 septembre 2026
Which law applies to a Air France flight?
Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (EU261): Air France is an EU/EEA-licensed carrier, so it applies to every flight departing the EU/EEA and to its flights into the EU/EEA from outside.
- Conditions
- Any flight departing the regime's territory is covered whichever airline operates it.
- A flight into the territory from outside is covered only when a licensed carrier of that regime (or the EU) operates it.
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 · verified 12 septembre 2026
How long do I have to claim against Air France?
For flights departing FR, a court claim is likely time-barred after 60 months (Article 2224 Code civil (five-year general limitation)). Other departure countries have their own limits; the airline's own claim form has no deadline of its own.
- Conditions
- The country whose enforcement body is competent — normally the departure country — sets the limit.
- Limitation is national law (CJEU C-139/11); escalation steps do not stop the clock.
Source: Code civil, article 2224 · Case C-139/11 Cuadrench Moré v KLM · verified 14 septembre 2026
Where do I send a claim to Air France?
Through the claim channel of Air France: https://www.airfrance.fr/information/legal/passenger-rights. Claim from the operating carrier, in writing, and keep proof of sending.
- Conditions
- Claim from the airline that operated the flight (on the boarding pass), not necessarily the one that sold the ticket.
- In writing, with the booking reference, flight number, date and the passengers' names; keep proof of sending.
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 · Interpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (2016/C 214/04) · verified 14 septembre 2026
What if Air France refuses to pay?
Air France is a member of Médiation Tourisme et Voyage (MTV), whose decisions are not binding on the airline. Refer the case there after a refusal or once the waiting period has passed; the enforcement body and the courts remain available.
- Conditions
- The body accepts the case 60 days after the claim was sent without a substantive answer, or after a final refusal.
- The national enforcement body of the departure country can examine the airline's compliance.
- A court claim remains available within the national time limit, as a last resort.
Source: Saisir le médiateur · How to complain: contact the airline first, then the National Enforcement Body of the country of departure (or arrival for inbound EU-carrier flights) · verified 14 septembre 2026
What if Air France says the delay was due to weather?
Weather can be an extraordinary circumstance — but only on the facts. Air France must prove the conditions were incompatible with operating this flight, that they affected this flight and not just the airport in general, and that no reasonable measure could have avoided the delay. A generic reference to weather does not discharge that burden.
- Conditions
- The burden of proof is on the airline (Art. 5(3)).
- The weather must have affected this flight, not just the airport in general; other flights that operated are evidence.
- The airline must also show what it did to avoid the disruption — spare aircraft, crew, re-routing.
- A technical fault, by contrast, is inherent in normal operations and not extraordinary.
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 · Interpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (2016/C 214/04) · Case C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia · Case C-257/14 van der Lans v KLM · verified 12 septembre 2026
Questions fréquentes
Does Air France pay compensation for a delay caused by a French ATC strike?
Usually not: an air-traffic-control strike is an extraordinary circumstance when it actually restricted your flight. Air France must still provide care, and you keep the right to a refund if the delay exceeds 5 hours. If your flight was delayed for another reason on a strike day, compensation is due.
How do I claim compensation from Air France?
Through the passenger-rights page on airfrance.fr, one claim per booking with the booking reference and the reason given. If Air France refuses or does not answer within 60 days, refer the case free of charge to the MTV mediator, then to the DGAC.
How much does Air France pay for a long-haul delay?
€600 per passenger from 4 hours of arrival delay on flights over 3,500 km, €300 between 3 and 4 hours. Flights to Réunion or the Antilles count as intra-EU, so the maximum is €400.
Which rules apply to an Air France flight from New York to Paris?
EU261, because Air France is an EU carrier — a flight into the EU on an EU airline is covered. Departures from the EU are covered whatever the airline.
Sources
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- Court of Justice of the European UnionCase C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann v Alitalia — technical problems are not, as such, extraordinary circumstances
- European CommissionInterpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (2016/C 214/04)
- 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
Dernière revue juridique : 12 septembre 2026 · Contenu mis à jour : 12 septembre 2026
Vérifiez si votre perturbation Air France ouvre droit à indemnisation.
Indiquez le vol ; la vérification applique les règles à la licence de Air France et à votre trajet, et vous donne le montant.