Delay of a charter flight for more than 12 hours will be compensated. Flight delay: passenger rights. Arbitrage practice. Possible reasons for delays

It is impossible to foresee everything in the world. You can buy the most best tickets on the plane, but not to fly away, since already in the arrival hall it turns out that the flight has been delayed. This trouble is almost always associated with a whole avalanche of related problems for the traveler, starting from where and how much money to eat during a long wait, and ending with how to still get to the desired point of arrival, since a hotel has been booked there, something important happens event, there must be a transfer to another flight, etc.

And since few of us have clairvoyant abilities, it will be useful to find out at your leisure what to do if your flight is delayed, since panic and anger in such a situation are the worst advisers. First of all, the procedure depends on how long the delay occurred.

What should a passenger do if their flight is delayed?

Even if the waiting time for a flight is short, say, 1 hour or a little more, you should not leave things to chance. You need to immediately go to the information desk after the announcement and ask the employee to give an explanation. There is usually no answer to such delays, but the main purpose of such a trip is to put a mark on the tickets about the delay. This will serve as indisputable evidence in any future proceedings.

The delay time and its reasons can be anything, but every passenger should know what to do if their flight is delayed. This list includes:

  1. Providing space in the mother and child room for passengers with children under 7 years of age.
  2. Baggage storage until departure.

Having freed your hands from your suitcases and settled down with your children in comfortable conditions, waiting for a delayed flight is incomparably more convenient. The carrier provides further services depending on the delay time.

If the flight is delayed by 2 hours or more, the passenger has the right to demand:

  1. Opportunities to make 2 free phone calls anywhere in the world, as well as send 2 free messages via the Internet.
  2. Drinks (water, tea, coffee, juices) in the required quantity.

If the flight is delayed by 4 hours and more, then the list of requirements can safely include:

  1. Hot meals immediately, and then every 6 hours during the day and 8 hours at night.

If your flight is delayed by 6 hours or more, all passengers of the flight by the carrier must be provided with:

  1. A place in the hotel until the moment of departure. Hotel room is provided to all flight passengers during the day after a delay of more than 8 hours, and at night after a delay of more than 6 hours. It doesn’t matter how many times delay announcements are extended at the airport, the countdown is based on the time on the tickets.
  2. Transportation from the airport building to the hotel by airport transport.

Passengers have the right to receive all of the above services absolutely free of charge. However, any excuses do not matter, since the rules oblige the carrier to take care of customers under all circumstances. In cases where the flight is delayed due to the fault of the airline, then she will no longer get away with a hotel room and a hot lunch. All flight passengers are additionally entitled to:

  1. 3% of the ticket price, multiplied by the number of hours of flight delay (Clause 5, Article 28 of the Law of the Russian Federation “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”).
  2. 0.25% of the minimum wage based on the number of hours of flight delay.

In total, due to compensation, the passenger will be able to return up to half of the cost of the air ticket (Article 120 of the Air Code of the Russian Federation). Of course, if the flight never took place, the passenger will receive the cost of the tickets back, in addition to the compensation due. All of the compensation amounts listed are valid in Russia, but in EU countries they are much higher. Proportional to the flight time and distance, a passenger who receives a flight cancellation notice from the airline less than 14 days before the departure date may receive compensation of up to 600 euros.

Important: do not wait too long if your plane flight is delayed until the carrier pays for a hotel or a hot lunch. Pay for everything yourself, but keep all payment documents: checks, receipts, since later the money will be returned, but, however, through the court.

Also, don't worry about transfers. If you had to transfer to another plane at the landing point, the carrier is obliged to provide a seat on the plane for another flight with the same point of arrival. Pay extra for new ticket You won't have to pay a penny, even if you are placed in business class instead of economy. But if the ticket was originally purchased for business class, and the new one is offered only in economy, then you must demand your money back!

How to get money from the carrier if your plane flight is delayed?

To get everything spent back, you need to write a statement on your behalf to the airline and ask to reimburse all costs, as well as pay the due compensation for the delay in departure. Please attach to this application:

  • checks for payment of hotel and meals;
  • a certificate from the airport information desk about the flight delay;
  • air ticket.

This claim does not have to be urgently sent somewhere; it can be sent to the carrier’s legal address by mail, but no later than 6 months from the date of the delayed flight. Usually such a claim is enough to get money back to your bank account specified in the letter. If there is no answer, you can safely go to court, because the law is on your side!

If you were to fly on a tour package, part of the cost of which was air tickets, then you can additionally request a refund from the tour operator for those paid days that you spent waiting for departure. You must hurry up and submit this claim to the tour operator’s office within 20 days from the date on which the signed contract for the provision of services expires.

Where to complain?

For a passenger, it matters which airline he is dealing with. Domestic flight cancellations and delays Russian airlines are considered under Russian legislation. Passenger complaints against foreign carriers who have violated their obligations to Russian travelers are also considered. It is worth noting that when going on a trip, you need not only to buy plane tickets, but also.

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“Neither tour operators nor air carriers were ready for such demand”

Experts explained the reasons for the delays charter flights

Igor Grom

In recent weeks, information about delays of charter flights has appeared almost daily. The problem has already affected several thousand tourists: people wait for hours at airports for flights to resorts, mainly to Turkey and Greece. The charter program of the VIM-Avia airline was actually disrupted, and there were also delays, for example, Pegasus Fly, "Russia", NordStar. Experts note that tour operators and airlines were not prepared for the explosive demand for foreign destinations. The Federal Air Transport Agency has instructed airlines to solve the problem of massive flight delays by June 20.

“This year the demand for foreign tourism has increased significantly, and we expect to reach pre-crisis levels. Neither tour operators nor air carriers were prepared for such demand.

That is, everyone implied that there would be growth, but, to be honest, it was hard to believe because there were no economic prerequisites.

Nevertheless early booking went very successfully. But now we see the other side of this coin,” Mikhail Maltsev, executive director of the Ural Tourism Association, told the site.

Natalya Khanina

According to Ekaterinburg Koltsovo Airport, the number of passengers on international flights in January - May 2017 increased by 70% compared to the same period last year. If you look at the figures for May alone, the increase is even more significant - 81.5%. For comparison: the number of passengers per domestic flights grew by only 10% in January-May.

The headquarters at Rostourism, headed by Mutko, will solve problems with VIM-Avia charters

The most serious problems arose with the VIM-Avia airline, which explained the failure of the charter program by a banal shortage of aircraft and a sharp increase in passenger traffic. Thus, three of the airline’s aircraft were unable to return from maintenance on time, which ultimately led to a pattern of delays and rescheduling of the company’s flights, and the company decided to cancel some charters. Transport prosecutors' offices in the regions announced an inspection of the airline. Yesterday the first meeting was held at Rostourism operational headquarters under the leadership of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Vitaly Mutko regarding the problems of VIM-Avia. Following the meeting, the department made a statement that first of all attention will be paid to sending tourists to southern resorts Russia. For those tourists who were planning to fly to Turkey, Bulgaria or Cyprus, Rostourism is considering the option of adjusting the flight program in the direction of China, Rostourism explained.

In addition to VIM-Avia, for example, tonight a flight from Yekaterinburg to Vietnam was delayed for 16 hours. Before this, there were many-hour delays, in particular, at Rossiya and NordStar.

As Mikhail Maltsev explained, in last years Almost every major tour operator from the TOP 10 has either acquired its own airline or entered into a contract with an airline engaged in charter transportation. “This is very expensive, and due to significant leasing payments, they simply do not have the opportunity to have reserve aircraft, unlike large air carriers like Aeroflot or Ural Airlines“, which primarily operate regular flights. And if some technical difficulty arises with the plane, even if the reserve plane is not at the departure point, it can quickly arrive at the required airport, pick up people, and thus the problem will be solved in short time with minimal costs,” notes Maltsev.

According to the expert, massive delays in charter flights could ultimately have a negative impact on the industry’s economy. On the one hand, demand may decrease again, and on the other hand, prices for tourist programs may increase in those areas where competition will decrease, Maltsev notes.

Meanwhile, today, June 8, the Federal Air Transport Agency issued an official statement that by June 20, charter airlines must adjust their transportation program to solve problems with flight delays and cancellations. The head of the Federal Air Transport Agency, Alexander Neradko, pointed out the discrepancy between the programs of charter airlines and their real capabilities. “Over the past five months of 2017, there has been a significant increase in volumes passenger transportation, which amount to 22% of the volumes of the same period last year. At the same time, charter airlines increased their performance by one and a half to two times. This growth in transportation volumes was not supported by the availability of an appropriate fleet aircraft and aviation personnel,” concluded the Federal Air Transport Agency.

The word “Armageddon” in the headline in relation to the failure of airline charter schedules in last days Doesn't look like an allegory at all. Last weekend, several air carriers experienced widespread flight delays at airports different countries hundreds were stuck waiting to fly home Russian tourists, others had to spend two or more days on their suitcases. The airlines themselves unanimously refer to the shortage of aircraft - the unexpected failure of even one aircraft leads to large-scale collapses. How convincing are such explanations?

All for Turkey

The thesis about the global shortage of aircraft in the charter market does not stand up to serious criticism, experts are convinced. They give an example of how actively airline fleets have recently begun to replenish, especially after flights to Turkey were resumed last fall. With an eye on this route, carriers were actively ordering airliners, which were marked by significant delays in the current summer season.

So, "VIM-Avia", which was the main newsmaker regarding schedule disruptions at the start of the season, at the end of 2016 replenished the fleet with four Boeing 737-500 aircraft, as well as wide-body aircraft - two Boeing 767-300, six Boeing 777-200 and one Airbus A 330-200. On the eve of summer, the carrier received another Boeing 777-200 and is expecting additional delivery of several Boeing 777s and Airbus A-330s. Even taking into account large-scale plans for regular flights to China, such a fleet is quite sufficient for active work in the charter market, observers say.

The park has also expanded iFly- an airline that has also received a lot of criticism in recent weeks due to disruptions in the charter schedule. A critical delay in the flight on July 21 from Bodrum to Moscow - the airliner arrived in the Russian capital two days later than planned - became the reason for the intervention of the Moscow Interregional Transport Prosecutor's Office. Airplane shortage? But the air carrier literally a month ago reported receiving from Emirates three sides A 330-200. Even if the airline subsequently implements its intention to decommission its two Boeing 757s, its fleet will still increase by one aircraft.

Of course, air carriers receive mostly “aged” cars – the same “new” iFly Airbuses are 18 years old. However, the practice of the Russian charter market has accumulated considerable experience in working with such an aircraft fleet under intense load conditions. Let us remember that it was used aircraft that formed the basis of aviation assets "Transaero", which dominated the custom air transportation segment for several years and left the market in 2015. Moreover, even in the busiest years for outbound tourism, 2011–2013, when the density of charter flights was noticeably higher than now, Transaero managed to be punctual. There were failures, but the schedule did not fall apart. Why?

A look back

As the top manager of the tour operator, who was once one of Transaero’s main air transportation partners, told the site’s correspondent, the airline constantly had up to 30% of its planes in reserve.

This was very expensive from the point of view of business economics, but for passengers it served as a reliable guarantee of the accuracy of adherence to the schedule.

“Transaero management took into account that it was operating a used aircraft fleet, so it had not one spare plane for 8–10 aircraft, but two,” continues the topic Vladimir Vorobyov, the president of another former airline partner. According to him, there were periods when out of the three Tu-204s Transaero had, only one flew, the rest were in reserve. In addition, some aircraft were used as sources of spare parts - in order to quickly install the necessary part on a broken aircraft, rather than wait for its delivery from the manufacturer.

There is another point of view. According to the commercial director Alexandra Burtina, Transearo had a chronic oversupply of aircraft; the carrier could not fully load its growing fleet, so additional redundancy was partly forced. Now carriers are working in a different situation - the demand for transportation is high, but it is concentrated in the summer months. Hence the high density of flight programs and difficulties with reservations.

What's in the bottom line

Two years after the departure of Transaero, it became obvious: the thesis that the airline was deservedly removed from the market due to the fact that it created excess capacity and actively dumped in order to fill the boards turned out to be untenable. Most of airworthy aircraft used by the carrier were transferred to the fleet "Russia", other airlines have increased their own aviation assets, and the surplus of aircraft has not disappeared. As a result, dumping continues to reign in the charter market, and due to the reluctance of management to ensure reliable reservations of aircraft, tourists have to endure unimaginable disruptions in schedules. In the future, this may lead to a persistent phobia among travel agency clients towards charter flights as such.

“If in 2004–2008 some seer had told me what would happen in the tourist air transportation market in 2017, I would probably have simply left tourism, deciding that this was Armageddon,” he shares his opinion with his colleagues in the group.

A flight delay is an unpleasant but relatively common situation that can happen at the very beginning of a trip. The reasons are quite varied: bad weather, technical problems on the plane, heavy load airspace airport, internal problems of the airline, etc. Regardless of what caused the plane to be delayed, there is no need to be scared or confused. Below we will look at what to do if your flight is delayed.

Passenger rights in case of flight delay

Whether you are flying on a charter or scheduled flight, on a major air carrier or on a airline, the rights of a passenger when a flight is delayed are the same.

It must be remembered that all issues during a flight delay must be resolved with representatives of the airline, and not with airport services. In turn, if problems arise with departure at the scheduled time, the airline is obliged to immediately notify you of the reasons and timing of the delay of the aircraft flight.

Where to contact?

Unfortunately, when it comes to respecting all the rights of passengers, airlines do not always demonstrate their proactivity, so you must know all the rules yourself and do not hesitate to remind the carrier representatives at the airport about them.

Where can I find an airline representative? The right person could be at your flight check-in counter, at your airline's sales office at the airport, or at the gate itself. If your search is unsuccessful, feel free to call the airline phone number indicated on your ticket.

Keep an eye on the clock

  • Families with small passengers under 7 years old are entitled to access to an equipped and comfortable mother and child room, even if the flight delay is minor.
  • If your flight is delayed for 2 hours, you can make 2 free calls or send 2 emails. In addition, you should have access to cold drinks.
  • A flight delay of more than 4 hours already means that the airline will provide hot meals. Usually this is a coupon for a certain amount to order food at one of the airport restaurants. You should receive this service every 6 hours during the day and every 8 hours at night.
  • If the flight delay reaches 8 hours (or 6 hours at night), the airline is obliged to accommodate you in a hotel, organize transport there and back, and also provide free luggage storage at the airport. If for some reason you are not satisfied with the conditions of hotel accommodation (for example, it is unacceptable for strangers to stay in the same room), you can find a hotel room yourself, remembering to save all documents confirming personal expenses. This will help you later claim compensation for plane delays.

Filing a claim and compensation for flight delay

Airplane delays are not only unpleasant due to the unplanned wait, but can also lead to certain losses: a missed business meeting, a missed connecting flight with another airline, a paid but unused hotel reservation. In this case, any victim has the right to file a flight delay claim and receive compensation. However, it should be borne in mind that this rule applies only when the flight delay is due to the fault of the airline itself. For example, bad weather conditions or excessive congestion at the airport will not be a reason to claim compensation.

In order to competently file a claim, you need to collect as many documents as possible confirming the fact that the plane was delayed. Immediately after the delay is announced, ask the company representatives to make a note about this on your ticket, and when boarding the plane, the actual departure time. Keep all receipts indicating your personal expenses during the flight delay.

To receive compensation for an aircraft flight delay, a claim with all attached evidence must be submitted to the airline within 6 months after arrival. If there is no response within 30 days, you can immediately go to court.

The amount of compensation is 25% of the minimum wage for each hour of delay, but not more than 50% of the cost of your air ticket.

Now you know everything about what to do if your flight is delayed. We wish you pleasant travels!

Flight delay compensation

If your flight is delayed, you should know the following basic rights and actions:

1. Passengers on charter and regular flights have the same rights. The carrier is equally liable to the passenger for the delay of both a charter and a regular flight.

2. You have the right to reliable and accurate information. Contact a representative of the airline operating the flight (most carriers have representative offices or designated counters at almost all major Russian airports) or, if you are flying from a small airport where there is no official airline representative, the airport information desk. In any case, they must explain to you why and how much the flight departure is delayed.

If the responsible persons of the air carrier or airport refuse to understand you, you can remind them that, according to the requirements of paragraph 72 of the Federal Aviation Regulations, “ General rules air transportation of passengers, baggage, cargo and requirements for servicing passengers, shippers, consignees”, approved by Order of the Ministry of Transport of Russia dated June 28, 2007 No. 82 (hereinafter referred to as FAP), regular flights are operated in accordance with the aircraft schedule generated by the carrier and published in a computer database of aircraft traffic schedules, and charter flights - in accordance with the charter flight plan (schedule).

At the same time, paragraph 73 of the FAP defines the information requirements for each regular flight, which the published aircraft schedule must comply with. In the event of a change in the aircraft schedule, the carrier must take possible measures to inform passengers with whom the contract has been concluded air transportation, on changing the aircraft schedule in any available way (clause 74 of the FAR).

Information about the delay or cancellation of the flight, as well as the reasons for the delay or cancellation of the flight, is communicated to passengers by the carrier or the organization carrying out airport activities (service organization) directly at the airport in visual and/or acoustic form (clause 92 of the FAP).

3. You have the right to request that a representative of the airline or employees of the airport of departure/destination put a note on the ticket about the flight delay. It is necessary if you later write a claim to the carrier or sue him. Exact time for an actual departure, ask for it to be written in hand by a representative of the airline/airport and certified with a stamp (this can be done upon boarding or re-check-in - this is carried out in cases where tourists were accommodated in a hotel during a flight delay).

4. In case of any delay in flight departure, the air carrier, in accordance with the requirements of paragraph 99. FAP, is obliged to organize the following services for passengers free of charge:

1) provide a mother and child room to a passenger with a child under 7 years of age;

2) organize luggage storage.

4.1. If the flight delay is more than two hours:

1) 2 phone calls or 2 emails;

2) soft drinks.

4.2. If the flight delay is more than four hours:

1) hot meals; At the same time, they should feed hot food every 6 hours during the day and every 8 hours at night.

4.3. If the flight delay is more than six hours:

1) accommodation in a hotel (if waiting for departure more than 6 hours at night and more than 8 hours during the day);

2) organize delivery by transport from the airport to the hotel and back in cases where the hotel is provided without charging an additional fee.

It is customary to accommodate passengers in the hotels closest to the airport. You do not have the right to be placed in a double room with strangers. If the conditions are not at all satisfactory, you have the right to choose a hotel yourself and wait for departure there, having previously agreed with airport representatives that you will be notified of the departure time. In this case, pay for the room yourself. And after returning home (or arriving at the resort), you will need to write an official request to the main office of the airline demanding a refund of part of the amount spent.

5. If the airline, in order to reduce the time of delay to a minimum and possible claims to zero, sends you on a different route or flight of another company, then this must be carried out exclusively at the expense of the airline or the airport, there can be no talk of any additional payments in this case .

6. If, due to a flight delay, your trip has become shorter, you have the right to demand a refund from the tour operator for all paid but unused services: a night in a hotel, a missed excursion, etc. As a rule, claims are made after returning from vacation. At the same time, one must keep in mind that tour operators willingly offer compensation right on the spot: an additional excursion, full board instead of breakfast, etc.

7. In accordance with the provisions of Article 120 of the Air Code of the Russian Federation, for delay in delivering a passenger to the destination, the carrier must pay a fine in the amount of twenty-five percent of the minimum wage established by federal law for each hour of delay, but not more than fifty percent of the carriage charge.

Tourists should take into account that a fine cannot be collected if the change in flight departure time was due to force majeure, the elimination of an aircraft malfunction that threatens the life or health of the aircraft’s passengers, or other circumstances beyond the control of the carrier.

According to the provisions of paragraph 3 of Article 401 Civil Code circumstances of force majeure do not include violation of obligations on the part of the debtor's counterparties, the absence on the market of goods necessary for performance, or the debtor's lack of necessary Money(for example, to pay for fuel), and the carrier has the right to cancel, delay the flight indicated on the ticket, change the type of aircraft, change the transportation route only if required by flight safety conditions and/or aviation security, as well as at the request of government bodies in accordance with their competence.

To receive compensation, you must submit a claim to the airline, attaching copies of documents confirming your right to compensation. According to the provisions of Article 126 of the Air Code, a passenger has the right to file a claim against the carrier (the application can be submitted in person or sent by registered mail) within 6 months from the date of arrival - at the airline representative office at the airport of destination or departure. The carrier company is obliged to consider your claim within 30 days.

If the appeal was ignored or the culprits refused to compensate your expenses, you have the right to sue them. Claims against the carrier in accordance with the relevant rule on exclusive jurisdiction contained in Part 3 of Article 30 of the Civil Procedure Code Russian Federation, are presented to the court at the location of the carrier against whom the claim was made in accordance with the established procedure.

The statement of claim to the court will need to include copies of the air ticket with a note about the flight delay (cancellation), invoices for the expenses you incurred (for example, for hotel, meals, telephone calls), as well as your written claim to the carrier and the response of its representatives.

8. The fact of cancellation or delay of a flight due to the fault of the carrier, as well as failure by it to fulfill the duties assigned to it in accordance with paragraph 99. FAP for the appropriate service of passengers may, in the event of a culpable interruption in transportation, be grounds for passengers to present to the carrier a claim for compensation for moral damage due to the infliction of the corresponding physical and moral suffering (based on Article 15 of the Law of the Russian Federation dated 02/07/1992 No. 2300-1 “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”). The amount of compensation for moral damage is determined by the court and does not depend on the amount of compensation for property damage.