Does EU261 cover a Lufthansa City Airlines flight delay?
Lufthansa City Airlines owes €250, €400 or €600 per passenger under EU261 when you land three or more hours late at your final destination, when it cancels with under fourteen days' notice, or when it denies you boarding. Its German licence makes it an EU carrier, so flights in both directions are covered.
Lufthansa City Airlines is a Lufthansa company with its own German operating licence. It began flying from Munich in June 2024.
The flight number starts LH. The booking is a Lufthansa booking. And because the licence is German, the airline is an EU carrier.
What a delayed flight pays
Amounts are per passenger, not per booking. A delay of 3–4 hours over 3,500 km may be reduced by half under Article 7(2).
What does a German licence mean for a Lufthansa City Airlines claim?
EU261 covers every departure from an EU or EEA airport, whoever operates it. An EU licence adds the other direction: your flight back into Munich from Manchester or Birmingham is covered too.
The compensation runs €250, €400 or €600, set by the distance of the route:
| Route distance | Compensation per passenger |
|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | €250 |
| 1,500 to 3,500 km | €400 |
| Over 3,500 km (€400 if the flight is within the EU) | €600 |
Most of this airline's network is short-haul, so the first two bands cover almost everything it flies.
You are owed the money when you land three or more hours late at your final destination, when the airline cancels with less than fourteen days' notice, or when it denies you boarding on a full flight.
Does a Lufthansa City Airlines flight count as a Lufthansa flight?
For your rights, yes: the rules and the amounts are the same. The claim, though, is against Lufthansa City Airlines, the airline that operated the flight, even when Lufthansa sold the ticket. Name it with the flight number and the date.
One point is worth knowing. If a short leg on this airline makes you miss a long-haul connection on the same booking, the delay is measured at your final destination. A ninety-minute delay into Frankfurt can therefore be worth €600, not €250, once the missed connection is counted.
How do you claim compensation from Lufthansa City Airlines?
Start with the flight itself. Our free flight check reads the recorded departure and arrival times and tells you which band your Lufthansa City Airlines flight falls in.
A Lufthansa City Airlines compensation claim turns on two things: the arrival time, and the reason the airline gives.
For a late arrival, read the flight delay compensation guide. For a flight that never flew, read the cancellation compensation guide. It covers Lufthansa City Airlines cancellation compensation too. Has the airline said no? The case law summary sets out what the courts make of the usual excuses.
Check what you're owed
What you need to claim
- Your flight number and date
- The airports you flew between
- Roughly how late you arrived
- Your booking reference, if you still have it
No boarding pass? We can usually work from the flight number and date alone.