Back in 2019, many air travelers had their flights canceled. The reason for this was that all SAS pilots went on strike resulting in more than 500 cancelled flights. This meant that there were many flight delays or flight cancellations. Under normal circumstances, delayed and canceled flights mean that the airline must pay compensation or give a full refund. However, SAS has refused to pay flight compensation for cancellations for this reason. SAS claims that this is an extraordinary circumstance and it was out of the airline’s control. But, under the EU regulation, it was not considered an extraordinary circumstance and it was believed that everyone who had sought compensation had completely reasonable claims.
However, this does not mean that SAS just pays money to all their air passengers. These claims still need to be taken to court and therefore it requires a lot of work before you can get your compensation. Air Delay offers the service of taking the airline to court. We at Air Delay have extensive experience and have already won several hundred SAS pilot strike cases. If you have been affected by SAS Scandinavian Airlines strikes or any flight disruption with any other airline, then we can help you claim the compensation for the delayed flights and cancellations.
EU law adopted for SAS Scandinavian Airlines pilot strike
The European Court of Justice ruled on the 23rd of March 2021 that a pre-announced and legal strike among SAS Airlines’ own pilots cannot be considered an ‘’extraordinary circumstance’’. This is of great importance to the many travelers who experienced delays and cancellations, or other flight disruptions during the strike, as they are entitled to compensation. This announced strike was made by the SAS Pilot Group which consists of pilots from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. The reason for this strike was that the various pilot associations (Scandinavian Norwegian Pilots’ Association, Swedish Pilot Association, Danish Pilot Association) did not believe that the pilots were paid enough by SAS airlines. These associations take care of the interests of Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish SAS pilots and it is therefore them who could announce this strike prior to it taking place. This triggered a major uproar in SAS, where the administrative positions now had to work under high pressure. SAS initially stated that ‘’this requirement is virtually impossible’’. The pilots are getting a fair wage and they do not believe that the negotiations can lead to anything other than conflict.
SAS Airlines has otherwise so far claimed that the strike fell under provision in the EU regulation, which states that airlines are exempt from paying compensation if the cancellation or delay is due to ‘’ extraordinary circumstances’’. This was rejected by the European Court of Justice on the 23rd March 2021. Therefore, you can now claim a SAS delayed flight compensation for your flight, which was delayed due to a SAS Airlines strike. In the past, strikes have been a somewhat bizarre area where one did not know if there was any justification. However, these announced strikes are different as the pilots had notified this to the airlines before. Therefore, SAS Airlines could have resolved the conflict before all flights were canceled. That is why these reasons for delays and cancellations are under SAS’s responsibility. The pilots and cabin crew who went on strike are their employees and SAS Airlines is obligated to keep control of their aircraft and employees.
Passengers can receive up to 600 EUR in flight delay compensation
The many travelers who experienced that their flight was delayed or canceled as a cause from the SAS pilot strike, are now entitled to compensation. The rules now apply, to all other passengers who had been affected by the conflict, which led to cancellations and delays in Europe. A canceled or delayed flight where a pilot or cabin crew has gone on strike must be determined in accordance with EU Regulation 261/2004. The Supreme Court of Europe believed that the air travelers had completely reasonable claims for compensation which the airline SAS must now pay.
The travelers who are entitled to SAS flight delay compensation can expect to 250-600 EUR. The amount is determined, by the number of hours the traveler has been delayed, as well as how many kilometers the plane was supposed to fly.
However, there is a deadline for when you can apply for compensation, and it expires 3 years after the incident. So unfortunately it means that if you experienced the flight delay three years ago, it is too late to seek compensation now.
Seek flight compensation for your SAS trip
At Air Delay we allow all travelers to receive compensation for their SAS journeys but we also help to collect compensation from all other airlines. Air Delay not only helps with strike cases for SAS pilots, but we handle all claims where passengers have arrived more than 3 hours later to their final destination and cancellations. We are an experienced team that has helped more than 10,000 travelers.
Contact us if you want to create your case:
There are many other people that have experienced flight disruptions with SAS and had a hard time getting their rightful compensation or refund. You can look up the facebook group called Bad Experiences with SAS – Refund and compensation, and get in contact with other people having the same issues as you.
