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Thessaloniki Macedonia International Airport (SKG): flight delays and compensation

Thessaloniki Macedonia International 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 Thessaloniki Macedonia International 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.

Live at Thessaloniki (SKG) today

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About the airport

Thessaloniki Macedonia International Airport (SKG) serves Thessaloniki, Greece. On the routes Eurostat reports, 6,652,972 passengers flew to or from it in 2024, the 73rd-highest among the 397 European airports we cover. Its busiest connections were to Athens, Crete, Larnaca, Munich.

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 Thessaloniki – 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 SKGReturn
Athens ATH1,649,094299 km€250€250
Crete HER299,024608 km€250€250
Larnaca LCA285,9131,127 km€250€250
Munich MUC265,2661,242 km€250€250
Düsseldorf DUS229,5561,727 km€400€400
Frankfurt FRA229,4771,541 km€400€400
Vienna VIE217,087985 km€250€250
Stuttgart STR209,3871,414 km€250€250
Berlin BER193,7351,501 km€400€400
London LGW188,7982,134 km€400£350
Paphos PFO157,2981,057 km€250€250
Bucharest OTP153,348518 km€250€250
Istanbul IST145,416491 km€250€250*
Amsterdam AMS144,0491,905 km€400€400
Zurich ZRH132,7291,385 km€250€250
Rhodes RHO122,058638 km€250€250
Crete CHQ121,948564 km€250€250
London STN120,0952,144 km€400£350
Budapest BUD112,261823 km€250€250
Kraków KRK102,6331,091 km€250€250
Nuremberg NUE88,4581,365 km€250€250
Rome CIA86,027880 km€250€250
Milan BGY85,1861,217 km€250€250
Weeze NRN77,3231,782 km€400€400
Stockholm ARN77,2122,156 km€400€400
Memmingen FMM67,9361,308 km€250€250
Malta MLA66,792904 km€250€250
Hamburg HAM66,1891,752 km€400€400
Cologne CGN66,1621,677 km€400€400
Belgrade BEG65,980525 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 Makedonia (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, 31,024 flights arrived at SKG; 120 of them were held back this way, 61 by more than 15 minutes – an average of 0.11 minutes per arrival.

What caused the ATFM delay

  • other42%
  • ATC capacity31%
  • weather15%
  • aerodrome capacity9%
  • equipment (ATC)3%
  • accident/incident2%

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 October 2025 – 1,427 minutes, mostly other; 23 October 2025 – 731 minutes, mostly other; 3 January 2025 – 359 minutes, mostly weather.

2026 so far (to 30 September 2026): 25,168 arrivals, 0.31 minutes of ATFM delay per arrival (worse than 2025), mainly ATC capacity (87%) and equipment (ATC) (7%).

Check what happened at SKG on your travel day →

What this means for a claim: ATFM delays come from weather (15% here), air traffic control capacity and staffing (34%) 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 Thessaloniki Macedonia International Airport

  • EUROCONTROL recorded 31,024 arrivals at SKG in 2025; 120 were held by air traffic flow restrictions, 61 of them by more than 15 minutes.
  • The largest single cause of this flow delay was other (42%); weather accounted for 15%.
  • The worst day was 28 October 2025, with 1,427 minutes of flow delay, mostly other.
  • 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 Thessaloniki Macedonia International Airport?

    Yes. SKG 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 Thessaloniki Macedonia International 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.