Flight cancelled due to war or conflict

Armed conflicts, political unrest and sudden airspace closures can seriously disrupt international air travel. When governments restrict or close airspace for safety reasons, airlines may be forced to delay, reroute or cancel flights at short notice.

If your flight is affected by war, geopolitical tensions or an airspace closure, it is important to understand your rights.

In this article, we explain what you are entitled to under European law and how your travel or cancellation insurance may (or may not) help.

Duty of care: your immediate rights

When a flight is delayed or cancelled due to security concerns or a closed airspace, this is usually considered an extraordinary circumstance. This affects your right to financial compensation (explained below).

However, the airline’s duty of care still fully applies. This means you are always entitled to choose between:

• Re-routing to your final destination at the earliest opportunity, or
• A refund of the unused part of your ticket.

In addition, the airline must provide necessary assistance while you wait, such as:

• Meals and refreshments
• Hotel accommodation (if an overnight stay is required)
• Transport between the airport and the hotel

These rights apply even if the disruption is outside the airline’s control, such as war, political instability or government-imposed airspace restrictions.

What if the airline does not provide assistance?

In practice, large-scale disruptions can make it difficult for airlines to arrange accommodation or assistance immediately. If you have to organise meals, transport or a hotel yourself, keep all receipts.

Under EU law, you can request reimbursement of reasonable and necessary expenses from the airline afterwards.

What does your travel or cancellation insurance cover?

Many travellers assume that any insurance will automatically cover disruptions caused by war or political unrest. In reality, travel insurance and cancellation insurance serve different purposes and apply at different stages of your trip.

Travel insurance

Travel insurance usually applies during your trip. It is designed to cover unexpected events that occur after departure.

Depending on your policy, travel insurance may reimburse additional accommodation costs, necessary medical expenses, emergency assistance or, in some cases, repatriation.

If you are stranded due to airspace closures or security concerns, your insurer may cover certain additional costs that arise during your stay.

However, coverage can be limited or excluded if official government travel advice for your destination or transfer airport is classified as high risk at the time of travel.

The exact scope of coverage depends entirely on the terms and conditions of your policy. It is therefore essential to review your policy carefully or contact your insurer for clarification.

Cancellation insurance

Cancellation insurance applies before your trip begins. It covers situations in which you are unable to travel.

In most standard policies, cancellation insurance only reimburses costs when you cannot travel due to personal circumstances, such as illness, injury or the death of a close family member. Geopolitical tensions, armed conflict or airspace closures are generally not automatically covered under a basic cancellation policy.

Some extended or all-risk cancellation policies may provide coverage for extraordinary events. This often depends on whether the conflict escalated after the booking was made and whether there was negative government travel advice at the time of booking.

Again, entitlement to reimbursement depends entirely on the specific wording of your insurance contract.

Are you entitled to financial compensation?

Under EU Regulation 261/2004, passengers may be entitled to compensation of up to €600 per person for long delays or cancellations, provided certain conditions are met.

However, this right does not apply when the disruption is caused by extraordinary circumstances, such as:

• War or armed conflict
• Political instability
• Government decisions, including airspace closures

In these situations, airlines are not required to pay financial compensation.

That said, the airline must be able to demonstrate that the disruption was truly beyond its control and that it took all reasonable measures to avoid or minimise the delay.

What about connecting flights?

If your journey includes a connection, your rights depend largely on how your ticket was booked. If your entire trip is booked under one single reservation, your rights generally apply to the full journey, even if part of the trip is operated by a non-EU airline.

Did you book separate tickets for different legs of your journey? Than your protection is more limited. In that case, a cancellation of the first flight may not automatically entitle you to re-routing for the second flight.

Always check your booking confirmation to see whether your flights are part of one contract of carriage.