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Rome Fiumicino Airport (Leonardo da Vinci) (FCO): flight delays and compensation

Rome Fiumicino Airport (Leonardo da Vinci) – annual passengers: 45+ million (2024). 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 Rome Fiumicino Airport (Leonardo da Vinci) that arrives 3 or more hours late, is cancelled less than 14 days before departure, or is overbooked can give €250–600 per passenger. Italian law, 2-year limitation period; enforcement body: ENAC.

About the airport

Fiumicino is Italy's largest airport and the hub of ITA Airways. It handles most of Rome's long-haul traffic, while Ciampino serves a smaller number of low-cost flights.

An EU airport under Italian law: every departing flight is covered by EU261.

Busiest routes from Rome – and what a delay is worth

The 30 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 FCOReturn
Madrid MAD1,979,9461,331 km€250€250
Catania CTA1,941,657539 km€250€250
Barcelona BCN1,706,636848 km€250€250
Palermo PMO1,675,982410 km€250€250
Paris ORY1,185,4441,090 km€250€250
Milan LIN1,054,328470 km€250€250
Paris CDG967,6031,101 km€250€250
London LGW923,7661,406 km€250£220
Athens ATH898,5501,085 km€250€250
Cagliari CAG790,268392 km€250€250
Amsterdam AMS759,5261,297 km€250€250
London LHR728,7671,444 km€250£220
Bari BRI689,257383 km€250€250
Istanbul IST668,2001,371 km€250€250*
Lisbon LIS654,0691,840 km€400€400
Brussels BRU633,9831,173 km€250€250
Munich MUC617,757729 km€250€250
Vienna VIE614,848779 km€250€250
Frankfurt FRA595,501958 km€250€250
Berlin BER523,0731,178 km€250€250
Dublin DUB502,8591,886 km€400€400
Olbia OLB497,679249 km€250€250
Brindisi BDS495,486493 km€250€250
Prague PRG485,390935 km€250€250
Nice NCE484,656460 km€250€250
Malta MLA464,565690 km€250€250
Zurich ZRH464,128693 km€250€250
Málaga AGP453,0771,548 km€400€400
Valencia VLC435,7081,104 km€250€250
Tirana TIA408,863622 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 Fiumicino (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, 161,374 flights arrived at FCO; 357 of them were held back this way, 133 by more than 15 minutes – an average of 0.04 minutes per arrival.

What caused the ATFM delay

  • weather74%
  • other12%
  • airspace management10%
  • industrial action (ATC)4%

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

Worst days: 28 July 2025 – 892 minutes, mostly weather; 29 July 2025 – 710 minutes, mostly other; 2 November 2025 – 614 minutes, mostly weather.

2026 so far (to 30 September 2026): 124,538 arrivals, 0.13 minutes of ATFM delay per arrival (worse than 2025), mainly aerodrome capacity (58%) and weather (40%).

Air traffic control strike days recorded for FCO since 2024: 17 December 2025 (252 min).

Check what happened at FCO on your travel day →

What this means for a claim: ATFM delays come from weather (74% here), air traffic control capacity and staffing (10%), ATC strikes (4%) 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 Rome Fiumicino Airport (Leonardo da Vinci)

  • Strikes: Italian air traffic controllers, airport staff and airline crews strike regularly, with advance notice. Strikes by air traffic control or airport staff are usually extraordinary circumstances; strikes by the airline's own staff are not (CJEU C-28/20).
  • Summer peaks and thunderstorms – weather is an extraordinary circumstance, but care is always due.
  • Knock-on delays from earlier rotations – the airline's own risk.

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%)
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Local information

  • Italy's enforcement body is ENAC. ENAC advises complaining to the airline within two years of the flight, so act quickly.
  • If a strike was announced well in advance and the airline did not adjust its schedule, its defence is open to challenge.

Frequently asked questions

Can I claim compensation for a flight departing from Rome Fiumicino Airport (Leonardo da Vinci)?

Yes. FCO 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 Rome Fiumicino Airport (Leonardo da Vinci)?

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.