In short: Flying to Denmark from elsewhere in Europe, a delay of 3 hours or more is worth €250–€400 per passenger on typical routes (EU261, any airline); from the UK £220 under UK261. On the way home, EU261 covers every flight leaving Denmark.
Your rights each way
| Direction | Rules | Covered airlines | 3h+ delay / late cancellation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Another EU/EEA country or Switzerland → Denmark | EU261 | any airline | €250–€400 |
| Denmark → another EU/EEA country or Switzerland | EU261 | any airline | €250–€400 |
| UK → Denmark | UK261 | any airline | £220 |
| Denmark → UK | EU261 | any airline | €250 |
| Outside Europe → Denmark | EU261 | only an EU airline | by distance, up to €600 |
Amounts are per passenger and depend on the great-circle distance between your airports – the ranges cover the busiest routes. Whatever the cause, from 2 hours’ delay the airline must provide meals and drinks, and a hotel if you are stuck overnight – where EU261 or UK261 applies. Living in Denmark or flying from there? See how to claim in Denmark.
Check your flight to or from Denmark
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Airports in Denmark
| Airport | Passengers 2024* | ATFM delay per arrival 2025 | Main cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copenhagen (CPH) | 25,234,093 | 0.55 min | ATC staffing (42%) |
| Billund (BLL) | 3,466,705 | – | – |
| Aalborg (AAL) | 1,292,114 | – | – |
| Aarhus (AAR) | 389,362 | – | – |
| Rønne (RNN) | 141,477 | – | – |
* Passengers on routes reported to Eurostat (both directions).
Routes from the UK to Denmark
From the UK: Copenhagen Kastrup is Denmark’s main airport; in the CAA’s 2025 data UK flights also served Billund, Aarhus, Esbjerg and Aalborg. Flights departing from Denmark are covered by EU261 whatever the airline; flights from the UK to Denmark by UK261; flights from Denmark to the UK by EU261.
Punctuality of the busiest routes in 2025, from UK Civil Aviation Authority data (departures from UK airports).
| Route | Flights | On time | 3h+ late | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London Heathrow – Copenhagen | 7,164 | 85.1% | 0.07% | 1.13% |
| London Gatwick – Copenhagen | 3,457 | 81.8% | 0.03% | 0.83% |
| Manchester – Copenhagen | 2,997 | 71.6% | 0.60% | 0.86% |
| London Stansted – Copenhagen | 2,219 | 80.5% | 0.27% | 0.45% |
| Edinburgh – Copenhagen | 1,740 | 74.4% | 0.68% | 0.63% |
Busiest European routes
- Copenhagen – Oslo Gardermoen1,375,473 pax
- Copenhagen – Stockholm Arlanda1,299,390 pax
- Amsterdam Schiphol – Copenhagen1,159,509 pax
- Paris Charles de Gaulle – Copenhagen841,207 pax
- Copenhagen – Aalborg752,856 pax
- Copenhagen – Helsinki606,871 pax
- Copenhagen – Málaga577,622 pax
- Vienna – Copenhagen566,674 pax
- Copenhagen – Reykjavík Keflavík556,908 pax
- Frankfurt – Copenhagen532,714 pax
- Barcelona El Prat – Copenhagen530,439 pax
- Munich – Copenhagen493,886 pax
- Copenhagen – Berlin481,555 pax
- Copenhagen – Warsaw Chopin461,356 pax
- Copenhagen – Zurich444,838 pax
- Amsterdam Schiphol – Billund441,516 pax
- Copenhagen – Brussels Zaventem429,515 pax
- Copenhagen – Gdańsk391,790 pax
- Rome Fiumicino – Copenhagen391,288 pax
- Copenhagen – Bergen388,529 pax
Why flights to Denmark are delayed
In 2025, air traffic flow restrictions held back arrivals at Denmark’s airports by 0.55 minutes per flight on average (EUROCONTROL, 1 airports). The worst month was Jul.
Causes of air traffic flow delay (2025)
Average ATFM delay per arrival by month (min)
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
Weather and air traffic control restrictions are usually extraordinary circumstances – but the airline must show they caused your delay. Check what happened on your travel day.
Strikes
No strikes affecting flights in Denmark are announced in our calendar at the moment.
Where to complain
- The airline first – in writing, with your booking reference. Use our complaint letter generator.
- National enforcement body: Danish Civil Aviation and Railway Authority (Trafikstyrelsen) – Complain to the airline first and give it six weeks to answer. Trafikstyrelsen then handles complaints about delays, cancellations and denied boarding in Denmark free of charge; processing can take 9–12 months..
- From the UK: if you flew from a UK airport or with a UK airline, you can also use UK ADR, the CAA or the small claims court.
Time limit: 3 years from the date the flight was delayed or cancelled, as a starting point (Danish Limitation Act), according to the European Consumer Centre Denmark.
Tips for flying to Denmark
- The European Small Claims Procedure is not available in Denmark, so a cross-border court claim there follows national procedure – the free Trafikstyrelsen complaint is usually the better first step.
- The Faroe Islands are outside the EU Treaties and Greenland is an overseas country and territory, so departures from the Faroe Islands or Greenland are not covered as EU departures.
- In EUROCONTROL’s 2025 data air traffic control staffing was the largest single cause of arrival flow-control delay at Copenhagen.
- Denmark’s 3-year limit runs from the flight date, not the end of the year as in Germany.
Frequently asked questions
Am I covered on a flight to Denmark?
From anywhere in the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, yes: EU261 covers every departing flight, whatever the airline – €250–€400 per passenger on typical routes if you arrive 3 hours or more late. From the UK, UK261 covers every departing flight (£220). From outside Europe you are covered only on an EU airline.
Am I covered on the flight home from Denmark?
Denmark applies EU261 to every departing flight, so you are covered with any airline (€250–€400 on typical routes).
Who enforces passenger rights in Denmark?
Danish Civil Aviation and Railway Authority (Trafikstyrelsen) – Complain to the airline first and give it six weeks to answer. Trafikstyrelsen then handles complaints about delays, cancellations and denied boarding in Denmark free of charge; processing can take 9–12 months.. Complain to the airline first; if it rejects you or does not answer, you can turn to this body. All national enforcement bodies.
Are strikes covered?
It depends whose staff are on strike. Air traffic control or airport strikes are usually extraordinary circumstances; strikes by the airline’s own staff are not (CJEU C-28/20). See strikes and compensation.
Data: Eurostat 2024, EUROCONTROL, UK Civil Aviation Authority 2025. Information only, not legal advice.
Sources
- National enforcement bodies under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (updated 13 October 2026) – European Commission
- Din guide til at klage over flyrejsen – Trafikstyrelsen
- Forsinket fly – Forbrugereuropa (ECC Denmark)
- Greenland – an Overseas Country and Territory associated with the EU – European Commission
- Regulation (EC) No 861/2007 – European Small Claims Procedure (not applicable in Denmark) – EUR-Lex
- Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, Article 355 (territorial application; Faroe Islands; overseas countries and territories) – EUR-Lex
- Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 – full text (Article 3: scope; recital 15: air traffic management decisions) – EUR-Lex
- Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 as it applies in the UK (UK261) – Article 3, scope – legislation.gov.uk
- UK flight punctuality statistics 2025 (flights by destination from UK airports) – UK Civil Aviation Authority
- Airport arrival ATFM (flow-control) delay data, 2024–2025 – EUROCONTROL Aviation Intelligence Unit
- Air passenger transport by reporting airport (avia_par), 2024 – Eurostat
- Eurostat – air passenger transport routes between partner airports and main airports (2024) – Eurostat
- EUROCONTROL – airport arrival ATFM delays (open performance data) – EUROCONTROL
- UK flight punctuality statistics 2025 – UK Civil Aviation Authority
We check every rule against the sources above. Spotted an error? Tell us – see our editorial policy.