Turkish Airlines flight delay and cancellation compensation

Direction decides everything

Turkish Airlines is based in Istanbul and is the flag carrier of Türkiye. It is not an EU, EEA or UK airline, and that single fact governs when you can claim.

EU261 has two limbs. The first covers any flight departing an EU/EEA airport, on any airline in the world. The second covers flights arriving into the EU/EEA from a third country, but only when the operating carrier holds an EU/EEA licence. Turkish Airlines meets the first and not the second:

• Frankfurt to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines — covered by EU261
• Istanbul to Frankfurt on Turkish Airlines — not covered by EU261
• London to Istanbul — covered by UK261, which protects departures from the UK on any carrier
• Istanbul to London — not covered by UK261, because that limb requires a UK or EU carrier

The direction of travel, not the airline's size or reputation, is what decides it.

Connecting itineraries: the point most people miss

Istanbul Airport is one of the world's largest transfer hubs, and this is where the departure limb becomes valuable. Where an EU departure and an onward flight beyond Istanbul are on a single booking, the journey is generally treated as one whole for EU261 purposes, and the relevant lateness is measured at your final destination — even if that destination is Bangkok, Nairobi or Buenos Aires.

So a Vienna–Istanbul–Colombo itinerary on one ticket that delivers you to Colombo four hours late can support a claim, calculated on the distance from Vienna to Colombo. Separately purchased tickets do not link that way.

How much you could receive

• EUR 250 — routes of 1,500 km or less
• EUR 400 — intra-EU routes over 1,500 km and other routes of 1,500 to 3,500 km, which covers most direct European services to Istanbul
• EUR 600 — routes over 3,500 km, which is where long connecting itineraries land

UK261 uses GBP 220 / GBP 350 / GBP 520. Article 7(2) allows the top band to be halved where a re-routed long-haul arrival is under four hours late. Compensation is per passenger and unaffected by fare or cabin, and the trigger is a three-hour arrival delay, a cancellation with less than 14 days' notice, or denied boarding.

Where EU261 applies, so do the other obligations: care during the wait, and a refund or re-routing on cancellation or a delay of five hours or more.

When Turkish Airlines does not have to pay

For covered flights, the airline can escape compensation by proving extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided by all reasonable measures — severe weather, air-traffic-control restrictions, airspace or airport closures, security incidents and bird strikes. The burden of proof falls on the airline, and an unevidenced assertion is not a defence. Routine technical faults and crew shortages generally do not qualify, and industrial action by the airline's own staff is normally not extraordinary, while third-party or ATC strikes usually are.

Flights that fall outside EU261

If your flight departed Istanbul or another non-EU airport, the EU rules do not reach it. Türkiye operates its own passenger rights regulation, modelled on the EU framework, which can apply to departures from Turkish airports and is administered domestically. Contractual rights under the airline's conditions of carriage and, for baggage and certain damages, the Montreal Convention may also be relevant. Our service covers EU261 and UK261 claims.

Claiming

Keep the booking reference, boarding passes for every sector, the disruption notice and any receipts, and note your true arrival time. Response times vary widely between airlines and claims. A refused claim on an EU departure can be escalated to the national enforcement body of the departure state, or to court.

The eligibility check is free. We charge a fixed EUR 39 only when compensation is recovered — nothing if it is not.