AerolĂneas Argentinas compensation: when EU law has your back
AerolĂneas Argentinas is Argentina's state-owned flag carrier, headquartered in Buenos Aires. Its European services are non-stop flights to Buenos Aires Ezeiza from Madrid and Rome Fiumicino. We have handled more than 30 AerolĂneas Argentinas claims so far: almost half for delays and just over half for cancellations.
The crucial point is that this is a non-EU airline. Regulation (EC) 261/2004 only binds it on flights departing from an airport in the EU, Iceland, Norway or Switzerland. MadridâBuenos Aires is covered; the Buenos AiresâMadrid return is not, and neither are domestic Argentine flights or regional hops within South America.
Delay out of Madrid or Rome
You reach Buenos Aires, or the final destination on your ticket, 3 hours or more late.
3 hours or moreCancellation
Your flight from Europe was cancelled with less than 14 days' notice.
Under 14 daysBumped
Turned away at the gate in Madrid or Rome because the flight was oversold.
Paid on the dayNot covered
Flights leaving Argentina or Brazil, including the return to Europe, and genuine extraordinary circumstances.
Outside the RegulationNot sure where you stand? Enter your airports and travel date and you'll have an answer within minutes.
How much AerolĂneas Argentinas pays: âŹ600 from Europe
Europe to Argentina is always well over 3,500 km, so on covered flights the payout is âŹ600 per passenger, whatever the fare. These are the routes that come up most in our files:
| Route | Position | Owed |
|---|---|---|
| MadridâBuenos Aires | Departs the EU, 10,087 km | âŹ600 |
| RomeâBuenos Aires | Departs the EU, over 3,500 km | âŹ600 |
| Buenos AiresâMadrid, BahĂa BlancaâMadrid | Departs Argentina | Not covered |
| SaltaâBuenos Aires, El CalafateâBuenos Aires | Argentine domestic flight | Not covered |
| CuritibaâSan Carlos de Bariloche | Brazil to Argentina | Not covered |
Every passenger gets the full sum, children with their own seat included: a family of four on a RomeâBuenos Aires flight that landed five hours late can claim âŹ2,400. Travelling as a group? Enter the flight once on the form and add your companions.
AerolĂneas Argentinas flight delayed: what to do
On a flight of around 13 hours, a late departure often turns into a tight connection in Buenos Aires. What counts is the time the doors open on arrival. While you're still at the airport:
- Keep your boarding pass for the flight out of Madrid or Rome and for every onward leg.
- Photograph the departures board and note the actual landing time at Ezeiza.
- Ask for the reason in writing at the AerolĂneas desk, or keep the email they send.
- Hold on to receipts for food, taxis or a hotel if the airline didn't provide them.
- Don't swap the âŹ600 for vouchers or AerolĂneas Plus miles without checking first.
Care in Madrid and Rome
On departures from Europe, AerolĂneas Argentinas must give you meals and drinks and, if the flight slips to the next day, a hotel and transfers:
| Situation | Care from |
|---|---|
| Flights up to 1,500 km | 2 hours |
| Flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km | 3 hours |
| Over 3,500 km, as all flights to Argentina are | 4 hours |
| Delay of 5 hours or more | You may cancel and get a refund |
Missed connection in Buenos Aires
On a single booking MadridâBuenos AiresâEl Calafate, if the transatlantic delay made you miss the onward flight from Aeroparque, arrival in El Calafate is what counts: 3 hours or more means âŹ600. A SaltaâBuenos AiresâMadrid trip, by contrast, starts in Argentina and stays outside the rules. More on our page about the delayed AerolĂneas Argentinas flight.
AerolĂneas Argentinas flight cancelled: your rights
Over half of our AerolĂneas cases are cancellations, and the airline has also trimmed frequencies on its European routes, moving dates and times.
Always, for a cancelled flight leaving the EU: you choose between your money back and an alternative flight.
On top, if you were told less than 14 days ahead and the cause was not extraordinary.
| Notice | Compensation |
|---|---|
| 14 days or more | Not owed |
| 7 to 13 days | Owed if the alternative leaves more than 2 hours earlier or lands 4 hours or more later |
| Under 7 days | Owed if the alternative leaves more than 1 hour earlier or lands 2 hours or more later |
Flight moved to another day. If, a few days before travel, AerolĂneas swapped your RomeâBuenos Aires for the next day's service, that can count as a cancellation. See our page on the cancelled AerolĂneas Argentinas flight.
AerolĂneas Argentinas overbooking
We haven't seen a denied boarding case with this airline yet, but if it happens in Madrid or Rome the âŹ600 is due straight away, together with another flight. It doesn't apply if you lacked valid entry documents. Read our guide to AerolĂneas Argentinas overbooking.
AerolĂneas Argentinas strikes: who pays?
Industrial action is common: in June 2025, for instance, a strike by the APLA pilots' union forced 22 flight cancellations. When a walkout by the airline's own staff hits a flight leaving Europe, compensation is normally owed (case C-28/20). When it hits a flight leaving Argentina, EU rules don't apply.
Claim rejected by AerolĂneas Argentinas? Replies worth challenging
Faults arising in day-to-day operations are not extraordinary events.
CJEU, case C-549/07Pilots or cabin crew of AerolĂneas striking: usually owed. Air traffic controllers: not owed.
That's right: in that direction the Regulation doesn't bind an Argentine carrier.
Hubs, alliance and loyalty scheme
AerolĂneas Argentinas runs its international flights from Ezeiza and much of its domestic network from Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, close to the city centre. It has been a SkyTeam member since 2012, and its frequent flyer programme is AerolĂneas Plus.
How to claim from AerolĂneas Argentinas
Contact customer service through aerolineas.com.ar. If they refuse, turn to the national enforcement body of the country where the flight departed, or to the courts, investing your own time.
Online form and e-signature. We handle the claim, the formal demand and court action with our own lawyers. You pay only on success: 25% + VAT, and legal costs are ours even if the case is lost.
If your claim was already rejected
Send us the reply: if the flight was covered, we reopen the case with a formal letter before action.
What you need
- Ticket and boarding passesWith the booking reference.
- Passport or ID cardFor each traveller.
- Airline noticesEmails about delays, cancellations or schedule changes.
Time limits
These depend on the law of the country where the claim is brought (CJEU, case C-139/11). Even a trip from a few years ago may still qualify: enter the date and we'll check.
How long until you're paid
If AerolĂneas Argentinas accepts, payment usually takes a few weeks; if a formal demand or court case in Spain or Italy is needed, allow several months. We update you at each step and transfer your share by bank transfer.
Lost luggage with AerolĂneas Argentinas
Bag missing or damaged after the flight to Buenos Aires? The Montreal Convention applies: file a PIR at the airport, then claim within 7 days for damage or 21 days from delivery for a delay.
AerolĂneas Argentinas contact details
- Head office
- AerolĂneas Argentinas S.A., Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Complaints
- Help section of the official site aerolineas.com.ar
- Flight status
- aerolineas.com.ar
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