ANSWER · UK 261 AND EC 261

What am I entitled to when my flight is cancelled?

A cancellation triggers two separate rights under Art. 5. The first is a choice between a refund and re-routing, which the airline owes whatever the cause. The second is fixed compensation of €250, €400 or €600 under EC 261, or £220, £350 or £520 under UK 261, which Art. 7 requires unless the cancellation was announced at least 14 days ahead or caused by a proven extraordinary circumstance.

REVIEWED AGAINST RULE SET V6 AND THE CITED PRIMARY SOURCES · UPDATED 7 AUGUST 2026

The two rights, side by side

RIGHT	ARTICLE	OWED WHEN
Refund of the unused ticket, or re-routing	Art. 8	On every cancellation, cause is irrelevant
Care: meals, communications, accommodation	Art. 9	While you wait, cause is irrelevant
Fixed compensation	Art. 7	Unless notice was 14 days or more, or the cause was extraordinary

Airlines commonly settle the Art. 8 right and stop there. The Art. 7 claim is separate and survives a refund.

What the compensation is worth

COMPENSATION BY DISTANCE BAND
DISTANCE BAND	EC 261	UK 261
Up to 1,500 km	€250	£220
1,500 to 3,500 km	€400	£350
Over 3,500 km	€600	£520

Bands and amounts read from rule set v5, the same data the free check evaluates. EC 261 figures are set by Art. 7(1); the sterling figures were substituted by SI 2019/278 for flights covered by the retained regulation.

What counts as a cancellation

Art. 2(l) defines it as the non operation of a flight that was previously planned. Sousa Rodríguez extended it in 2011: an aircraft that takes off and is forced to return to the departure airport, with passengers transferred to other flights, is a cancellation too.

A flight that operates broadly to its original plan stays a delay however late it runs, which is the line Sturgeon drew. The distinction matters because the 14 day notice rule has no equivalent for delays.

THE JUDGMENTS BEHIND THIS ANSWER

Sousa Rodríguez, C-83/102011

SOURCES

Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 5 · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 8 · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
Case C-83/10 Sousa Rodríguez v Air France, judgment of 13 October 2011 (ECLI:EU:C:2011:664) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
The Air Passenger Rights and Air Travel Organisers' Licensing (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (SI 2019/278), reg. 8 · legislation.gov.uk · checked 7 August 2026