Wallentin-Hermann: technical faults are not "extraordinary"

The ruling that closes the airline’s favourite excuse.

Legal referenceC-549/07, 22 December 2008

The Court held that a technical problem coming to light during maintenance, or from a failure to maintain, is inherent in running an airline — so it does not count as an "extraordinary circumstance" that excuses compensation.

When an airline blames "a technical issue", this is the ruling that answers it. The airline must prove a genuinely external, unavoidable cause.

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