ANSWER · UK 261 AND EC 261

Which distance counts for a missed connection claim?

The great circle distance from the first departure airport to the final ticketed destination. Art. 7(1) measures the flight to the last destination at which the passenger will arrive after the scheduled time, so a 1,500 km first leg on a booking ending beyond 3,500 km carries the €600 band rather than the €250 one.

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

The bands, and where the line falls

MEASURED FROM FIRST DEPARTURE TO FINAL DESTINATION
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.

Worked examples

SAME FIRST LEG, DIFFERENT BANDS
ITINERARY ON ONE BOOKING	DISTANCE MEASURED	EC 261 BAND
Bremen to Frankfurt	Under 1,500 km	€250
Bremen to Frankfurt to Athens	Frankfurt is a stop, not the destination	€400
Bremen to Frankfurt to São Paulo	Beyond 3,500 km	€600

The disrupted leg is the same in all three rows. The band is set by where the ticket ends.

Why airlines dispute this one

Paying the band for the sector that failed is cheaper than paying the band for the journey. Art. 7(1) and Art. 2(h) put the measurement at the final destination, and Folkerts applied that reading to a connecting itinerary.

THE JUDGMENTS BEHIND THIS ANSWER

Folkerts, C-11/112013

SOURCES

Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 7(1) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 2(h) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
Case C-11/11 Air France v Folkerts, judgment of 26 February 2013 (Grand Chamber, ECLI:EU:C:2013:110) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026