In short: A medical emergency involving a passenger – for example a diversion or a return to stand to get someone off the aircraft – is usually an extraordinary circumstance, so the airline does not owe fixed compensation for the delay it genuinely caused. The airline must still keep the delay to a minimum and re-route you promptly; delays from other causes still count towards the 3 hours. Illness of a crew member is not extraordinary. Care (meals, hotel) is owed either way.
What the law says
Neither Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 nor UK261 mentions medical emergencies, and we have not found a Court of Justice judgment deciding the point directly. The clearest official statement is in the European Commission's 2024 interpretative guidelines, which say that "the removal of a passenger from the aircraft due to a medical emergency would be covered by the concept of extraordinary circumstances". Which? also lists an "unruly or sick passenger" among the events that count as extraordinary.
That view fits the general test from Wallentin-Hermann (C-549/07): a passenger's sudden illness is not part of the airline's normal activity in the way that maintenance or rostering are, and the airline cannot control it. It also mirrors the closest Court of Justice ruling, Transportes Aéreos Portugueses (C-74/19, 11 June 2020), in which a flight from Lisbon to Fortaleza diverted to Las Palmas to offload an unruly passenger. The Court held that such a diversion is an extraordinary circumstance unless the airline contributed to the behaviour or ignored warning signs.
The Commission's guidelines are an official interpretation, not a court ruling. A court could take a different view on unusual facts, so the airline still has to explain and evidence what happened.
Is it extraordinary? Medical situations compared
| Situation | Extraordinary? | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Passenger taken ill on board; diversion to land them | Usually yes | Commission guidelines 2024, section 5.2.3(f) |
| Passenger taken ill before take-off; aircraft returns to stand to offload them and their bags | Usually yes | Commission guidelines 2024 |
| Medical emergency on the previous flight of the same aircraft | Depends | Direct causal link required (C-74/19) |
| Delay after the diversion longer than reasonably necessary; next-day re-routing when earlier options existed | Not covered | C-74/19, ruling 3 |
| Pilot or cabin crew member taken ill | No | C-156/22 TAP; Lipton v BA City Flyer |
Reasonable measures still apply
Even when the emergency is extraordinary, Article 5(3) only excuses the airline if the delay "could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken". After a diversion, that typically means:
- Getting going again promptly. A diversion can trigger further steps – refuelling, a new slot, sometimes crew hours – and the airline must show these were handled as quickly as reasonably possible.
- Re-routing quickly if the flight cannot continue. In C-74/19 the Court held that putting passengers on the airline's own flight the next day is not a reasonable measure unless there was no other direct or indirect re-routing, on that airline or any other, arriving earlier, or such re-routing would have been an intolerable sacrifice for the airline.
- Separating the causes. Under Pešková (C-315/15), only the delay caused by the extraordinary event is deducted. If the aircraft was already late for another reason, that part still counts.
Crew illness is a different matter
Airlines sometimes describe a crew member's illness as a "medical emergency". Legally it is treated very differently. The English Court of Appeal held in Lipton v BA City Flyer [2021] EWCA Civ 454 that a captain's illness is inherent in an airline's normal operations, and the Court of Justice reached the same conclusion in TAP Portugal (C-156/22, 2023) even where a co-pilot died shortly before departure. If the person taken ill was part of the crew, see our guide to crew shortages and sickness – compensation is usually due.
If you were the one taken ill
EU261 and UK261 protect passengers whose flight is cancelled, delayed or who are denied boarding. They do not give a right to compensation or a refund where you cannot fly because you are ill. Whether you get anything back depends on your fare conditions and on your travel insurance. If you were removed from a flight because of your own illness, ask the airline about rebooking and check your insurance policy for medical and cancellation cover.
What the airline must prove
- That a passenger medical emergency happened, on which flight, and what action it required (return to stand, diversion, offloading).
- How long that action delayed your flight – and what the rest of the delay was caused by.
- What it did afterwards to limit the delay, including re-routing options it considered.
Airlines will not share a passenger's medical details, and you do not need them. What matters is the operational record: the diversion or return to stand, its timing and what followed.
What you can do
- Note the timings: when the emergency was announced, when you landed or returned to stand, and when you finally left.
- Check the flight history on a flight-tracking site to confirm the diversion and the times.
- Ask the airline to break down the delay and explain what it did to re-route passengers. If the delay after the emergency looks longer than necessary, claim for that part.
- Escalate if the airline refuses without explanation – to 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 – see how to claim and the case law library. If your flight landed at a different airport, see also diverted flight compensation.
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Frequently asked questions
Can I claim compensation for a flight delayed by a medical emergency?
Usually not for the delay the emergency itself caused. The European Commission's 2024 guidelines say the removal of a passenger from the aircraft because of a medical emergency would be covered by the concept of extraordinary circumstances. But the airline must still keep the delay to a minimum, and any extra delay from other causes counts towards the 3 hours.
Our flight diverted because a passenger was taken ill, and we arrived the next day. Is the airline off the hook?
Not automatically. After a diversion the airline must take reasonable measures to get passengers to their destination. In a diversion case involving an unruly passenger, the Court of Justice held that re-routing passengers on the airline's own flight the next day is not a reasonable measure if an earlier option, on any airline, was available and was not an intolerable sacrifice (C-74/19).
The pilot was taken ill. Is that a medical emergency in this sense?
No. Illness of a crew member is treated as an internal matter the airline must plan for – Lipton v BA City Flyer in the UK and TAP Portugal (C-156/22) in the EU. See crew shortages and sickness.
The medical emergency happened on the previous flight of the same aircraft. Does it count for my flight?
It can, if there is a direct causal link between that emergency and your delay, and the airline shows it did what it reasonably could to limit the knock-on effect (C-74/19). See knock-on delays.
I was too ill to fly. Can I get a refund?
EU261 and UK261 do not cover a passenger who cannot travel because of their own illness – they apply when the airline cancels, delays or denies boarding. Whether you get money back depends on your fare rules and your travel insurance. Check both, and ask the airline about rebooking.
General information, not legal advice. We are an independent guide, not lawyers and not AirHelp.
Sources
- Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – recital 14 (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), section 5.2.3(f) – European Commission, Official Journal
- C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann, judgment of 22 December 2008 – 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-156/22 to C-158/22 TAP Portugal, judgment of 11 May 2023 – Court of Justice of the EU
- Lipton v BA City Flyer Ltd [2021] EWCA Civ 454 – Court of Appeal (England and Wales)
- Your flight compensation rights in extraordinary circumstances – Which?
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