In short: Weather that makes it unsafe or impossible to operate your flight – thunderstorms, fog below operating limits, snow or ice that closes the runway, a weather-related restriction imposed by air traffic control – is usually an extraordinary circumstance, so no fixed compensation is due. "Bad weather in the region", routine winter conditions, or weather that caused only part of a longer delay do not cancel your claim. The airline must prove the weather, its link to your flight and that it did everything reasonable to limit the delay. Care (meals, hotel) is owed either way.
What the law says
Recital 14 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 lists "meteorological conditions incompatible with the operation of the flight concerned" as an example of an extraordinary circumstance. The words "the flight concerned" matter: the question is not whether the weather was bad, but whether it was incompatible with operating the flight you were booked on.
Article 5(3) then adds two conditions. The airline must prove the circumstance, and it must show that the delay or cancellation could not have been avoided "even if all reasonable measures had been taken". The same wording applies under UK261 for flights from the UK.
The European Commission's 2024 interpretative guidelines give one weather example directly: an airline obliged to delay or cancel a flight at an airport congested because of bad weather, including where the weather causes capacity shortages, is facing extraordinary circumstances. The guidelines also stress that events listed in recital 14 are not automatic grounds for exemption and need a case-by-case assessment.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) lists "weather incompatible with safe operation of the flight" as likely to be extraordinary. Which? adds a practical gloss: extreme weather counts when it is severe enough that other flights are not taking off.
Is it extraordinary? Weather situations compared
| Situation | Extraordinary? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorms, strong crosswinds or icing at the departure or arrival airport at the time of your flight | Usually yes | Weather incompatible with operating the flight (recital 14) |
| Fog so dense that air traffic control limits take-offs and landings | Usually yes | Recital 14; air traffic management decision (recital 15) |
| Heavy snow that closes the runway or the airport | Usually yes | Recital 14 |
| Airport congested because of bad weather; capacity cut by air traffic control | Usually yes | Commission guidelines 2024, section 5.2.3(h) |
| Airspace closed by volcanic ash | Yes | C-12/11 McDonagh |
| Storm on an earlier flight of the same aircraft | Depends | Only with a direct causal link (C-74/19; C-826/19) |
| Weather caused 1 hour of a 4-hour delay; the rest was crew or technical | Partly | Only the weather part is deducted (C-315/15, ruling 4) |
| Light snow or frost that the airport normally handles | Usually no | Not severe enough to be incompatible with operating the flight |
| "Bad weather in Europe" with no link shown to your flight | No | The airline has not proved the circumstance or the link |
| Weather cleared, but the airline had no crew or aircraft ready afterwards | Usually no | Reasonable measures not taken (C-294/10 Eglītis) |
What the airline must prove
The airline carries the burden of proof on three points.
1. The weather event itself
Not "adverse weather" in general, but what conditions applied, where and when. Typical evidence is the airport's weather reports (METAR and TAF), air traffic control messages showing a weather-related restriction, or a notice that the runway or airport was closed.
2. The link to your flight
The weather must have caused your delay or cancellation. If it hit an earlier flight of the same aircraft, the Court of Justice allows the airline to rely on it only where there is a direct causal link between that event and your delay (C-74/19, 2020). In Austrian Airlines (C-826/19, 22 April 2021), the airline relied on stormy weather that had reduced the arrival rate three flights back in the aircraft's rotation; the Court said that is possible in principle, with the national court deciding whether the link was direct.
3. Reasonable measures
The airline must show that it could not have avoided the delay or cancellation even with all reasonable measures, using the staff, equipment and money available to it (C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann). Two rulings apply directly to weather:
- Reserve time. In Eglītis (C-294/10, 12 May 2011) the Court said an airline must, when planning a flight, take account of the risk of delay from such events and build in some reserve time so it can still operate the flight once the circumstances end. There is no fixed minimum buffer for all airlines, and the airline is not expected to make intolerable sacrifices.
- Re-routing. If the weather does force a cancellation or a long delay, simply moving you to the airline's own flight the next day is not a reasonable measure if another direct or indirect option – including on another airline – would have got you there sooner and was not an intolerable sacrifice (C-74/19).
Finally, where the weather explains only part of the delay, Pešková (C-315/15, 4 May 2017) says the weather part is deducted from the total. If what remains is still 3 hours or more at arrival, compensation is due.
Weather on an earlier flight: a common grey area
A storm in the morning can delay the same aircraft all day. You may read that a delay caused by weather on an earlier flight never counts as extraordinary. The Court of Justice's case law is more nuanced: the airline can rely on weather that affected an earlier flight of the same aircraft, but only if it shows a direct causal link, and only if it took reasonable steps – reserve time, a spare aircraft or crew where available, re-routing – to stop the delay spreading. In practice many afternoon "knock-on" delays fail this test because the chain is broken by something else, such as a crew running out of hours or a slow turnaround. Our guide to knock-on delays explains how to test the chain.
For UK261 claims, note that the TAP judgment (C-74/19) was given before the end of 2020 and remains part of how UK courts read the regulation; the Austrian Airlines judgment (C-826/19) came later and is persuasive rather than binding in the UK.
What you can do
- Ask for the reason in writing. Ask which weather conditions applied, at which airport, at what time, and whether they affected your flight or an earlier one.
- Check the weather reports. METAR archives for the departure and arrival airports are freely available online. Compare them with the airline's explanation.
- Check the flight history. Flight-tracking websites show whether other flights left the same airport around your departure time, and what your aircraft did earlier that day. If other airlines' flights to the same destination left on time, ask why yours could not.
- Separate the causes. Note any other reasons you were given at the airport (crew, technical, catering). If the weather explains only part of the delay, say so in your claim.
- Escalate if needed. If the airline refuses without evidence, follow our step-by-step claim guide – the national enforcement body or ADR body of the country where the incident happened for EU, EEA and Swiss flights (see where to complain and our country guides, for example Germany, Spain, France or Italy), or ADR or the CAA for UK flights – and see the case law library for the rulings to cite.
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What you are still owed
Even when the weather genuinely excuses the airline from paying fixed compensation (€250–€600 under EU261, £220–£520 under UK261), it must still look after you. The Commission's guidelines and the McDonagh judgment (C-12/11) confirm that the duty of care applies in extraordinary circumstances, however long they last:
- meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the waiting time, and two phone calls or emails;
- a hotel and transfers if you are stuck overnight;
- for a cancellation, a choice between a refund and re-routing at the earliest opportunity.
If the airline does not provide care, keep your receipts and claim the necessary, reasonable costs back. More in your rights during a delay.
Frequently asked questions
Is fog an extraordinary circumstance?
It can be. Fog that is so dense that air traffic control limits take-offs and landings, or that is below the minimum visibility the aircraft and crew are allowed to operate in, is weather "incompatible with the operation of the flight" in the words of recital 14. Morning fog that clears after an hour, followed by a further 3-hour delay for another reason, is different: only the fog part of the delay is deducted (C-315/15 Pešková).
My flight was cancelled because of snow. Can I claim?
Heavy snow that closes the runway or the airport is usually extraordinary. Light snow that the airport and the airline are equipped to handle is not severe enough on its own – consumer group Which? gives the example of light winter snow at an airport near the Alps. Ask the airline what exactly prevented your flight from operating and check whether other flights left.
The weather was fine where I was, but the airline says it was bad at the destination. Does that count?
It can. What matters is whether the weather was incompatible with operating your flight – that includes conditions at the destination or a capacity restriction imposed because of weather en route. The airline must show which conditions applied and how they caused your delay.
The airline blamed the weather on an earlier flight of the same aircraft. Is that allowed?
Yes, if there is a direct causal link. In Austrian Airlines (C-826/19, 2021) storms that reduced the arrival rate three flights earlier in the aircraft's rotation could in principle be relied on. The airline must still show it did all it reasonably could to stop the delay spreading. See knock-on delays.
Do I get food and a hotel during a weather delay?
Yes. Care under Article 9 – meals, refreshments, two phone calls or emails and a hotel if you are stuck overnight – is owed whatever caused the delay, including weather. If the airline does not provide it, keep receipts and claim the reasonable cost back.
Where can I find the weather at the time of my flight?
Airports publish routine aviation weather reports (METARs) every 30 or 60 minutes, and archives of them are freely available online. Search for the airport's four-letter ICAO code with "METAR history" for the date of your flight. You do not need to interpret them perfectly: if the airline's explanation does not match what the reports show, ask it to explain.
General information, not legal advice. We are an independent guide, not lawyers and not AirHelp.
Sources
- Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – recitals 14 and 15 (as adopted) – legislation.gov.uk
- Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – Article 5 (as adopted) – legislation.gov.uk
- Interpretative Guidelines on Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (C/2024/5687), sections 4.3.3 and 5 – European Commission, Official Journal
- C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann, judgment of 22 December 2008 – Court of Justice of the EU
- C-294/10 Eglītis and Ratnieks, judgment of 12 May 2011 – Court of Justice of the EU
- C-12/11 McDonagh, judgment of 31 January 2013 – Court of Justice of the EU
- C-315/15 Pešková and Peška, judgment of 4 May 2017 – Court of Justice of the EU
- C-74/19 Transportes Aéreos Portugueses, judgment of 11 June 2020 – Court of Justice of the EU
- C-826/19 Austrian Airlines, judgment of 22 April 2021 – Court of Justice of the EU
- Am I entitled to compensation? – UK Civil Aviation Authority
- Your flight compensation rights in extraordinary circumstances – Which?
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