SAS delayed flight compensation: EUR 250, 400 or 600
A delayed SAS flight can produce EC261 compensation when the covered journey reaches its final destination at least three hours late and SAS cannot prove an extraordinary event that remained unavoidable despite reasonable measures. The usual amount is EUR 250, EUR 400 or EUR 600 per passenger. Measure arrival when a door opens, assess all flights on one protected booking together, and confirm that SAS rather than a codeshare partner was the operating carrier.
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:
The departure-board delay is useful evidence, but it is not the final legal calculation. Preserve the original itinerary and use the three-hour arrival guide before deciding which destination and timing belong in the claim.
Four tests for an SAS delay claim
| Test | Question to answer | Useful evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Did the journey leave the EU/EEA, or enter it on a qualifying European operator? | Complete route and operated-by line |
| Arrival | Was the protected final destination reached three hours or more late? | Door-opening time and replacement boarding pass |
| Distance | Which EC261 band applies to that protected journey? | Airport pair and one-ticket itinerary |
| Cause | Can SAS prove an extraordinary event and reasonable measures? | Flight-specific explanation and chronology |
All four matter. A delay of four hours caused by an avoidable aircraft rotation problem may qualify, while a longer delay directly caused by an airport closure can fail the fixed-payment test. Refund and care are assessed independently.
Coverage follows the route and operator
An SAS-operated service leaving Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo or another EU/EEA airport normally falls within EC261. A direct SAS-operated return from a non-European country can also be covered because SAS is a qualifying European carrier. The same return operated by a non-European codeshare partner may fall outside EC261 even if it carries an SK marketing number.
Read the carrier named beside "operated by" on each sector. SAS Connect and SAS Link require entity-specific records, while a wet-lease aircraft can raise a more detailed question about who controlled the service. Do not send several identical claims merely because the ticket shows several brands. The SAS operator guide explains the documents that settle this question.
Arrival occurs when passengers can leave
Legal arrival is generally not touchdown, gate arrival on a tracking app, or the moment the parking brake is set. The decisive moment is normally when at least one door opens and passengers are permitted to disembark. A difference of several minutes can decide a case close to the three-hour threshold.
Record the time at the airport. A timestamped photograph, message sent from the gate, airport record, baggage receipt or reliable flight-tracking data can support the account. Ask SAS for its operational arrival record if the calculation is disputed. State the source of every time rather than presenting an unexplained screenshot.
If the aircraft diverts, measure onward arrival at the booked destination after the necessary ground transfer, subject to the specific diversion rules. The substitute airport is not always the endpoint of the legal journey.
One reservation can protect a later connection
Suppose a passenger travels Manchester-Copenhagen-Helsinki on one ticket. The first SAS flight lands late, the Helsinki connection is missed, and the replacement arrives four hours after the original schedule. The relevant delay can be four hours at Helsinki even if the first aircraft was only 70 minutes late.
The result changes when the passenger independently bought two tickets. If the first contract ends at Copenhagen, EC261 does not automatically treat Helsinki as its final destination. Evidence such as one PNR, a single e-ticket receipt and through baggage supports an integrated itinerary, but the legal character of the booking is more important than how an online search displayed it.
Minimum connecting time is not a defence by itself when SAS accepted a connection on one ticket. Passenger-caused delay is different: arriving late at the gate, missing document checks or leaving the secure route can break the causal chain.
Calculate the amount accurately
| Great-circle distance | Ordinary fixed amount |
|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | EUR 250 |
| Intra-EU/EEA over 1,500 km | EUR 400 |
| Other journeys from 1,500 km to 3,500 km | EUR 400 |
| Other journeys over 3,500 km | EUR 600 |
Use the endpoints of the protected journey, not the sum of each flown segment. For example, a connection through Copenhagen does not justify adding both sector distances. The last destination where the disruption affected arrival controls the measurement under the applicable case law.
The amount belongs to each qualifying passenger. Ticket price does not cap it, and a publicly available award ticket is not automatically excluded. A free staff ticket or fare unavailable to the public requires separate examination.
The SAS amount calculator guide addresses long-haul reductions, family bookings and unusual itineraries.
Test the stated cause rather than the label
SAS may rely on weather, air traffic control, airport restrictions, security events, bird strikes or another external occurrence. Request the location, timing and effect on this aircraft. Conditions at a distant airport hours earlier do not automatically explain the final three-hour delay.
The carrier must also show reasonable measures. Relevant questions include whether a spare aircraft or crew was realistically available, whether passengers could have been rerouted sooner, and how much recovery time existed in the schedule. The law does not require impossible or intolerable sacrifice, but it does require more than naming an external event.
Routine technical problems usually belong to normal airline activity. A defect newly disclosed across a fleet, deliberate interference or impact from an outside object requires its own factual assessment. Rotation delay also needs a causal timeline: an extraordinary event on an earlier sector does not excuse every later disruption without a direct link and reasonable recovery efforts.
Care and the five-hour choice
Meals and refreshments become due according to waiting time and flight distance, not only after the final three-hour compensation threshold. If an overnight stay becomes necessary, reasonable hotel accommodation and transport between the airport and lodging can be required. Keep itemised receipts when SAS does not provide vouchers.
At a departure delay of at least five hours, a passenger who no longer wishes to travel can choose reimbursement under the conditions in Article 8, with a return to the first point of departure where appropriate. That choice can end the journey, so do not request a refund and then use the same ticket without written clarification. The five-hour SAS guide separates abandoning the trip from continuing and later claiming compensation.
Evidence and submission
Save the original schedule, all boarding passes, replacement itinerary, baggage tags and written explanations. Record the actual door-opening time at the protected destination. For a connection, explain which incoming delay caused the missed sector and how SAS rerouted the booking.
In the claim, identify each traveller, route, operator, final delay, distance band, amount and reason supplied. Put meal or hotel expenses in a separate section with receipts. Preserve the SAS case reference and avoid duplicate submissions that split the evidence.
The law and airline procedures on this page were reviewed on 26 August 2026. The adopted EU reform's future filing and response periods are not yet the current rules.
FAQ
Is touchdown the SAS arrival time for compensation?
No. The usual legal measure is when at least one aircraft door opens and passengers are allowed to disembark.
Does a missed connection count if the first delay was under three hours?
It can. On one protected booking, lateness at the final destination matters, so a shorter initial delay may cause a qualifying missed connection.
Can SAS deny a claim by writing only "weather"?
That word alone is insufficient. SAS must connect the conditions to the flight and show that reasonable measures could not avoid the qualifying delay.
Are meals included in EUR 250, 400 or 600?
No. Care expenses and fixed compensation are separate remedies, so reasonable documented food costs can be claimed independently.
Does an award ticket qualify for delayed-flight compensation?
A ticket obtained through a publicly available loyalty programme can qualify. The payment method does not remove EC261 coverage by itself.