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✓ You only pay if you get compensation✓ Up to €600 per passenger✓ EC Regulation 261/2004
Fly ErnestDelay · Cancellation · Overbooking

Fly Ernest compensation: up to €600 per passenger

Fly Ernest flight delayed, cancelled or overbooked? Check for free in 2 minutes: we handle the claim, all the way to court if needed.

  • Up to €600 per passenger
  • Check in just 2 minutes
  • Nothing upfront: you only pay if you get compensation
  • Legal assistance specialised in air travel
DelayFlight24 applies European Regulation EC 261/2004
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Choose departure and arrival: we will show you right away how much you are owed.
  • Data protected
  • Nothing upfront
  • You only pay if we win
  • Transparent feeOnly 25% + VAT and only if Fly Ernest pays: out of €400 you receive €278.
  • All the way to courtIf Fly Ernest does not pay, our lawyers take the airline to court, at no extra cost to you.
  • Claims handled87,774 passengers have already trusted usupdated in real time

In short

  • Delay: if you arrive 3 hours or more late, Fly Ernest owes €250 to €600 per person, depending on the distance.
  • Cancellation: you are owed compensation if you were told less than 14 days before departure, on top of a ticket refund or an alternative flight.
  • Not owed for extraordinary circumstances (severe weather, air traffic control strikes). Technical faults and strikes by the airline's own staff usually are not extraordinary.
  • With DelayFlight24 you pay nothing upfront: if Fly Ernest pays, you keep €173.75 out of €250 or €278 out of €400.

Fly Ernest compensation: the airline stopped flying in January 2020

Fly Ernest, later renamed Ernest Airlines, was an Italian low-cost carrier headquartered in Milan with its main base at Milan Malpensa. It started out on routes between Italy and Albania, added Ukraine in 2017 and later flew to Romania and Spain too. It no longer operates. In late December 2019 ENAC, the Italian civil aviation authority, announced that the airline's operating licence would be suspended from 13 January 2020 because the required financial guarantees were missing. Ernest grounded its whole fleet on 11 January and never flew again.

If you had a Fly Ernest flight that was delayed, cancelled or overbooked, this page explains what the law said and what can still be done. We review Fly Ernest cases free of charge.

Because it was Italian, Ernest counted as an EU airline. Regulation (EC) 261/2004 therefore covered both its departures from Italy and its return flights from Tirana or Kyiv into Italy.

Long delay

Landing 3 hours or more behind schedule, on the way out or on the way back from Albania or Ukraine.

Flights up to 10 January 2020

Cancellation

Including the flights lost when Ernest shut down in January 2020 with only days of warning.

Short notice

Overbooking

Turned away at the gate because too many seats were sold, despite a valid ticket and documents.

Denied boarding

Exclusions

Outside events such as thick fog at Malpensa or an air traffic control strike. Ernest's money problems were not an outside event.

Extraordinary circumstances

Wondering whether your case still has a chance? Enter your Fly Ernest flight and we'll take a look, with no obligation.

What Fly Ernest should have paid

Compensation was a fixed sum based on flight distance, whatever the fare.

Distance Fly Ernest routes Amount
Up to 1,500 km Italy–Albania flights such as Milan–Tirana €250
1,500 to 3,500 km Some routes to Ukraine and Spain, depending on the Italian airport: we calculate the exact distance €400
Over 3,500 km No Ernest route was this long €600

Every passenger had an individual claim, so four people on a Milan–Tirana flight cancelled at the last minute would have been owed €1,000, plus the cost of the unused tickets. Children with a paid seat counted as adults.

Delayed Fly Ernest flight: what to dig out now

Delays were measured when the aircraft doors opened at the destination. Years later, everything depends on the paperwork you can still find:

  1. Your booking confirmation, even if you bought through a travel agent.
  2. Boarding passes, including photos or copies saved on your phone.
  3. Texts or emails from Ernest about the delay or the January 2020 suspension.
  4. Proof of payment, such as a card or bank statement.
  5. Receipts for extra costs, for example a replacement ticket with another airline.

Meals and hotels while waiting

Flight Care due after
Up to 1,500 km 2 hours
1,500 to 3,500 km 3 hours
Over 3,500 km 4 hours
5 hours or more Option to cancel and get a refund

Connecting flights

On a single booking, only the delay at the final destination mattered. More on our page about delayed Fly Ernest flights.

Does your Fly Ernest flight qualify?Check in 2 minutes, with no obligation.
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Fly Ernest flights cancelled by the 2020 shutdown

Ticket refund

For a flight that never left, the airline had to return the fare or offer another flight.

Fixed compensation

Due on top when notice was under 14 days and the cause lay inside the company.

Notice given Compensation
14 days or more No
7 to 13 days Yes, if the alternative left more than 2 hours early or arrived 4 hours or more late
Under 7 days Yes, if the alternative left more than 1 hour early or arrived 2 hours or more late

Package holidays. If your Ernest flight was part of a package, the tour operator is responsible for refunding it. See also our page on cancelled Fly Ernest flights.

Fly Ernest overbooking

The Tirana routes were busy around holidays, and passengers could be left behind despite a valid ticket. Compensation was then due immediately. Read our guide to Fly Ernest overbooking.

Strikes by Fly Ernest staff

A strike by Ernest's own pilots or cabin crew did not get the airline off the hook: the EU Court of Justice treats it as part of an airline's normal business (case C-28/20). A national air traffic control strike, by contrast, was an outside event.

Possible excuses and how much they count

Usually payable
"Aircraft grounded by a fault"

A technical problem arising from routine maintenance remains the airline's own risk.

EU Court of Justice, case C-549/07
Usually payable
"Licence suspended"

The suspension stemmed from Ernest's finances: an internal problem, not an extraordinary circumstance.

Often not payable
"Fog at Malpensa"

Fog that genuinely stopped take-offs and landings does excuse the airline.

Never heard back from Ernest? Many passengers didn't. Send us your booking and dates and we'll tell you honestly whether anything can still be done. Check your Fly Ernest flight.

Who pays now that Fly Ernest has closed

With the airline out of action, refunds and compensation became debts owed by Ernest S.p.A., and passengers have no priority over other creditors. Recovery is therefore uncertain, and we prefer to say so plainly.

How to make a claim

On your own

You need to find out who is now dealing with the company's debts. You can also complain to the national enforcement body of the country your flight departed from (ENAC for Italy) or go to court.

With DelayFlight24

We accept the case and assess it for free. If there is a way forward, our lawyers pursue it. You pay only if money comes in: 25% + VAT, leaving you €173.75 of €250 or €278 of €400.

Useful documents

  • Ernest bookingConfirmation email or travel agent receipt.
  • Passport or IDFor each passenger.
  • Proof of paymentCard statement or receipt.

Time limits

The Regulation sets no deadline; the law of the country where you bring the claim decides (EU Court of Justice, case C-139/11). For flights from 2019 or early 2020, time may well have run out in many countries: enter the date and we'll check.

Payment times

With an airline that no longer operates, nobody can promise a date: any payment depends on how the company's affairs are wound up. We keep you posted by email whenever something changes.

Lost bags with Fly Ernest

Lost or damaged luggage fell under the Montreal Convention: a PIR at the airport, then a written claim within 7 days for damage and within 21 days for late delivery.

Fly Ernest at a glance

Company
Ernest S.p.A., Milan, Italy
Base
Milan Malpensa
Status
No flights since 11 January 2020, after ENAC suspended its licence
Free assessment. You pay only if we recover something for you. Check your Fly Ernest flight.

What if Fly Ernest does not pay? We go all the way

Many airlines only pay when they realise we will not give up. If they refuse or do not reply, our lawyers take legal action, and you do not have to do anything.

Claim to the airline

We send the formal claim with all the documents.

Formal notice

If they do not pay, we send a formal notice with legal value.

Our lawyers in court

Our lawyers take the airline to court, all the way to a judgement.

  • If we lose, you pay nothingNo fee and no costs. If we win, the fee is 40% + VAT.
  • Legal costs are on usYou pay nothing for the court case, even if we lose.
  • All the way to a judgementWe do not stop at the formal notice: if needed we go to court.

Fly Ernest compensation: frequently asked questions

Is Fly Ernest still flying?
No. In late December 2019 the Italian aviation authority ENAC announced it would suspend Ernest Airlines' licence from 13 January 2020 over missing financial guarantees, and the airline stopped flying on 11 January 2020. It has not flown since.
Are Fly Ernest and Ernest Airlines the same company?
Yes. The airline launched under the Fly Ernest brand and became Ernest Airlines in 2017. The company was Ernest S.p.A., based in Milan with its main base at Malpensa.
My Fly Ernest flight was cancelled in January 2020. What was I entitled to?
A refund or another flight and, if you were told less than 14 days ahead, fixed compensation too: €250 on Italy–Albania flights and €400 on the longer routes. The airline's financial trouble is not an extraordinary circumstance.
Can I still get money from an airline that has stopped flying?
There is no guarantee. Your claim is against the company, and passengers have no priority over other creditors. We still accept the case and tell you honestly whether there is any prospect.
Were flights from Tirana or Kyiv to Italy covered?
Yes. Ernest was an Italian, and so EU, airline, which means EU261 also applied to its flights into Italy from non-EU countries such as Albania and Ukraine.
My Ernest flight was part of a package holiday. Who do I contact?
The tour operator that sold you the package is responsible for refunding it. Any compensation for delay or cancellation remains a claim against the airline.
Am I still in time for a 2019 Fly Ernest flight?
It depends on the country where you claim: the Regulation has no deadline and national law applies (EU Court of Justice, case C-139/11). For flights this old the limit may have passed, so give us the date and we'll check.
What does DelayFlight24 charge for a Fly Ernest case?
The assessment is free and there is nothing to pay up front. Only if we recover money do we keep 25% + VAT: you receive €173.75 of €250 or €278 of €400.

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