Malaysia Airlines compensation amount calculator
Working out exactly how much Malaysia Airlines owes you comes down to three questions in order: does your journey qualify at all, how far is it, and was your delay long enough to trigger the long-haul half-reduction — answer those three and the exact EUR or GBP figure follows directly from the table below. No guesswork or airline discretion is involved once these facts are established.
Free eligibility check
Check your case in the form
Enter your route, date and type of disruption. We will check whether your case qualifies for a claim under EU 261/2004 or UK261.
What happened to your flight?
Claim up to €600 for a delayed or cancelled flight.
Choose the situation that applies to your flight:
Step one: does your journey qualify?
Because Malaysia Airlines is neither an EU nor a UK carrier, coverage only applies to a flight genuinely departing an EU/EEA or UK airport — given the airline's own narrow European network, this in practice means a flight departing London Heathrow or Paris CDG. A journey departing Kuala Lumpur and merely arriving into Europe does not qualify under this framework. See the inbound exclusion guide if you're unsure your specific journey clears this first step.
Step two: how far is your journey?
Distance is measured as the great-circle distance between your true origin and your true final destination, not to or from any intermediate connecting point.
Step three: the amount table
| Distance | Full compensation | Half-reduction amount (3-4 hour arrival delay only) |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | EUR 250 / GBP 220 | Not applicable — full amount applies once the 3-hour threshold is crossed |
| 1,500-3,500 km, or a longer intra-EU/EEA flight | EUR 400 / GBP 350 | Not applicable — full amount applies once the 3-hour threshold is crossed |
| Over 3,500 km | EUR 600 / GBP 520 | EUR 300 / GBP 260 |
The half-reduction only applies to the over-3,500-kilometre band, and only when the arrival delay is specifically three to four hours. Once a long-haul delay reaches four hours, the full amount applies with no reduction.
Why the top band applies to almost every qualifying Malaysia Airlines claim
Given that London-Kuala Lumpur and Paris-Kuala Lumpur are both well over 3,500 kilometres, virtually any qualifying Malaysia Airlines disruption on these two routes lands in the top compensation band — the half-reduction question is therefore the main variable that actually decides your final figure, more so than on a carrier with a mix of shorter and longer European routes.
A step-by-step calculation walkthrough
Start with your true origin and true final destination. Calculate or look up the great-circle distance between them. Match that distance to the correct row in the table above. Then check your actual arrival delay: under three hours, no compensation; three to four hours on a long-haul journey, the half amount; four hours or more, the full amount.
Currency: EUR or GBP?
Whether your compensation is calculated in EUR or GBP depends on which regulation applies — EU261 uses EUR for a Paris CDG departure, UK261 uses GBP for a London Heathrow departure. If your journey involves a connection between the two countries, check the UK departures guide to confirm which regime actually governs your claim.
What this calculator does not cover
This table covers only fixed compensation for a delay, cancellation or denied boarding. It does not cover a refund of your ticket, reimbursement of receipted expenses, a downgrade refund, or any Montreal Convention baggage or damages claim.
A worked example
A passenger flies Malaysia Airlines from London Heathrow to Kuala Lumpur, a distance well over 3,500 kilometres. The flight qualifies under UK261 since it departs the UK. The passenger's final arrival is delayed by three hours and forty minutes due to an ordinary operational issue. Applying the table: the distance places the journey in the over-3,500-kilometre band, and the delay falls in the three-to-four-hour half-reduction range, so the passenger is entitled to GBP 260 rather than the full GBP 520.
What if your itinerary includes a stop beyond London or Paris?
An itinerary continuing past London or Paris to a further European point is still assessed on the same true-origin-to-true-final-destination basis, provided the whole booking is on one reservation — just confirm which specific airline operated the continuing sector first.
FAQ
How do I know which distance band my Malaysia Airlines journey falls into?
Work out the great-circle distance from your genuine origin to your genuine final destination, then see which of the three rows in the table it lands in.
When does the half-reduction rule actually apply?
Strictly on the over-3,500-kilometre journeys, and strictly when the arrival delay sits in the three-to-four-hour window. Push past four hours and the reduction disappears entirely.
Does this calculator apply to a flight departing Kuala Lumpur?
No — only a flight genuinely departing an EU/EEA or UK airport qualifies, given Malaysia Airlines' non-EU/non-UK carrier status.
Should I use EUR or GBP figures for my claim?
EUR under EU261 for a Paris departure, GBP under UK261 for a London departure.
Does this calculator apply to a refund or expense claim too?
No, only to fixed compensation for a delay, cancellation or denied boarding.
If you're unsure how to calculate the distance yourself
A publicly available flight-distance calculator can compute the great-circle figure directly from airport codes, generally more reliable than estimating from a map. Use your genuine origin and final destination codes, not any connecting point along the way.
Confirm your figures before submitting a claim
Double-check your distance calculation and your actual arrival delay against your own evidence before submitting a claim.
Multi-passenger bookings
Each qualifying passenger on a shared booking is entitled to the applicable compensation amount individually, not a single combined figure split between everyone on the reservation.
Include your working when you submit the claim
Attach the distance figure and its source, alongside your evidenced arrival delay, when you actually submit your claim — showing your working makes it far quicker for Malaysia Airlines to verify rather than recalculate everything themselves before responding.
Double-check before you submit
A misjudged distance or an imprecise delay figure in your initial submission can slow down an otherwise straightforward claim — take the extra minute to verify both before sending anything to Malaysia Airlines.
A closing note on group claims
Each qualifying passenger's amount is calculated the same way individually, using the same distance and delay figures for the shared journey — the calculation itself doesn't change based on how many people were travelling together.