The cancellation of a flight due to the sudden death of a crew member does not exempt the airline from its obligation to compensate passengers for the delay, the European Court of Justice ruled today.

The case

The case concerns a flight of the Portuguese company TAP, which was canceled on July 17, 2019 because the co-pilot was found dead in the bed of his hotel room where he was staying less than two hours before the scheduled departure time.

The flight from Stuttgart to Lisbon was due to depart at 6:05am and was canceled as the entire crew declared they were unable to fly due to shock.

The passengers eventually flew to Lisbon with a replacement crew with a delay of more than ten hours.

Many passengers claimed compensation for the delay, but TAP refused to pay it as it claimed that the co-pilot’s death was an extraordinary circumstance, which exempts it from the obligation to compensate passengers.

The decision in favor of the passengers

The European Court of Justice rejected the argument stating that when an unexcused absence – including illness or death – is “inherently linked” to crew scheduling, which is part of an airline’s normal activities.

“As tragic and definitive as it is, the situation of an unexpected death is no different, from a legal point of view, than one in which a flight cannot be carried out when a crew member suddenly becomes unwell shortly before the flight departs,” the court ruled.

“The air carrier must expect such unforeseen events to arise in the context of the scheduling of its crews and the working hours of its personnel,” the decision concluded.

The case was initially heard by the Stuttgart District Court, which asked the European Court of Justice to interpret the EU’s air passenger rights regulation.