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M. R. Štefánik Airport (BTS): flight delays and compensation

M. R. Štefánik Airport. As an EU airport, every flight departing from here is covered by EU Regulation 261/2004. Here is what to expect if your flight was delayed or cancelled here, or you were stranded.

By the EU261 Flight Delay editorial team Last reviewed: Reading time: 6 min How we write our guides

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In short: Any flight departing from M. R. Štefánik Airport that arrives 3 or more hours late, is cancelled less than 14 days before departure, or is overbooked can give €250–600 per passenger. Departures: EU261 with any airline.

About the airport

M. R. Štefánik Airport (BTS) serves Bratislava, Slovakia. On the routes Eurostat reports, 1,482,573 passengers flew to or from it in 2024, the 157th-highest among the 397 European airports we cover. Its busiest connections were to Antalya, London, London, Milan.

Every flight departing from here is covered by EU Regulation 261/2004, whatever the airline. Flights arriving here are covered if they depart from the EU, or if an EU airline operates them from outside the EU.

Busiest routes from Bratislava – and what a delay is worth

The 27 busiest routes on Eurostat’s 2024 data, with the compensation for a 3-hour-plus delay or a late cancellation in each direction.

DestinationPassengers 2024DistanceFrom BTSReturn
Antalya AYT214,5811,671 km€400€400*
London STN111,8001,278 km€250£220
London LTN95,7931,318 km€250£220
Milan BGY90,112634 km€250€250
Skopje SKP67,409772 km€250€250*
Dublin DUB63,5851,741 km€400€400
Larnaca LCA62,9842,005 km€400€400
Malta MLA61,9141,388 km€250€250
Manchester MAN56,8411,481 km€250£220
Alghero AHO54,1331,096 km€250€250
Thessaloniki SKG51,892965 km€250€250
Brussels CRL50,567958 km€250€250
Rome CIA48,669796 km€250€250
Burgas BOJ47,9861,016 km€250€250
Eindhoven EIN46,515923 km€250€250
Palma de Mallorca PMI39,3921,501 km€400€400
Crete HER37,0421,570 km€400€400
Edinburgh EDI36,3871,642 km€400£350
Corfu CFU36,363977 km€250€250
Rhodes RHO32,2431,581 km€400€400
Kaunas KUN32,071891 km€250€250
Trapani TPS30,8581,203 km€250€250
Leeds LBA27,2161,458 km€250£220
Dalaman DLM26,6701,586 km€400€400*
Istanbul SAW25,5691,252 km€250€250*
Sofia SOF22,439777 km€250€250
Patras GPA11,5421,165 km€250€250

* only with an EU (or UK) airline. Passengers: Eurostat, both directions, routes reported by EU/EEA airports.

Air traffic flow delays at M. R. Štefánik (2025)

EUROCONTROL records the delay imposed on arriving flights when the airport or the airspace around it cannot take more traffic (air traffic flow management, “ATFM”). In 2025, 11,443 flights arrived at BTS; 0 of them were held back this way, 0 by more than 15 minutes – an average of 0.00 minutes per arrival.

What caused the ATFM delay

    Average ATFM delay per arrival by month (min)

    1. J
    2. F
    3. M
    4. A
    5. M
    6. J
    7. J
    8. A
    9. S
    10. O
    11. N
    12. D

    2026 so far (to 30 September 2026): 13,993 arrivals, 0.00 minutes of ATFM delay per arrival (better than 2025).

    Check what happened at BTS on your travel day →

    What this means for a claim: ATFM delays come from weather (0% here), air traffic control capacity and staffing (0%) or airport limits – causes airlines often cite as extraordinary circumstances. They are only part of the story: most long delays come from the airline’s own operation (technical faults, crew, late inbound aircraft), which this data does not show. Source: EUROCONTROL.

    Typical delay causes at M. R. Štefánik Airport

    • EUROCONTROL recorded 11,443 arrivals at BTS in 2025; 0 were held by air traffic flow restrictions, 0 of them by more than 15 minutes.
    • Most long delays that earn compensation are not flow delays but airline problems – technical faults, crew shortages and late inbound aircraft – which do not count as extraordinary circumstances.

    Airlines you are likely to fly with here

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      What happened?Step 1 of 4

      What happened to your flight?
      Where did you fly from and to?

      With a connection, enter your first departure and your final destination – compensation is based on the total distance.

      How late did you arrive at your final destination?

      What counts is when the aircraft doors opened at your destination – not the departure delay.

      When were you told about the cancellation?
      When did you arrive on the replacement flight?
      Which airline operated the flight?
      When was the flight?

      How many passengers were on the booking?

      1 passenger

      Every passenger gets their own compensation, children too. Infants under 2 without their own seat do not count.

      • Free, no sign-up
      • Fee only if successful (35%)
      • AirHelp: Trustpilot 4.5/5

      Rather skip the questions? Start a claim with AirHelp straight away

      Local information

      • Ask the airline staff at the gate for the reason for the delay or cancellation and write it down; take a photo of the departure board.
      • From 2 hours’ delay (depending on distance) the airline must give you meals and drinks, and a hotel if you are stuck overnight – keep the receipts if you had to pay yourself.
      • If the airline rejects your claim, complain to the national enforcement body of the country where the flight departed (or arrived, for flights from outside the EU), or go to court.

      Frequently asked questions

      Can I claim compensation for a flight departing from M. R. Štefánik Airport?

      Yes. BTS is an EU airport, so every flight departing from it is covered by EU Regulation 261/2004, whatever the airline and wherever it is based.

      Can I claim compensation for a flight arriving at M. R. Štefánik Airport?

      If the flight departed from an EU airport: yes, with any airline. If it departed from the UK: yes, under UK261, with any airline. If it departed from elsewhere: only if an EU airline operated it.

      How is the length of the delay measured?

      By your arrival time at your final destination – more precisely, the moment the aircraft door opens at the gate. It must be at least 3 hours after the scheduled arrival time.

      Related guides

      Information only, not legal advice. Passenger figures are approximate and based on the airports' published statistics; punctuality figures are from the UK Civil Aviation Authority. We earn a commission when a claim submitted through our partner links is successful.

      Sources

      1. Eurostat – air passenger transport routes between partner airports and main airports (2024) – Eurostat
      2. EUROCONTROL – airport arrival ATFM delays (open performance data) – EUROCONTROL

      We check every rule against the sources above. Spotted an error? Tell us – see our editorial policy.