Air Cairo compensation: which flights qualify
Air Cairo flies holidaymakers from across Europe to Cairo, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh and Luxor, often on seats sold as part of a tour operator package. We have handled more than 150 Air Cairo claims, and more than 8 in 10 were about delays, usually long ones. If your flight left from a European airport, you could be owed €400 or €600 per person.
Air Cairo is an Egyptian airline, based in Cairo and 60% owned by EgyptAir, so it is not a European carrier. Regulation (EC) 261/2004 only binds it on flights departing from an airport in the EU, Norway, Iceland or Switzerland. Your return flight from Egypt is not covered by the European rules.
Outbound delay
Your Air Cairo flight from Europe lands in Egypt 3 hours or more behind schedule.
At least 3 hoursCancelled
The flight from Europe is scrapped with under 14 days' notice and no alternative at similar times.
Under 14 daysBumped
You are left behind at a European airport because the flight is full, despite having done everything right.
Owed at the gateNot covered
Flights from Egypt to Europe, Egyptian domestic flights booked separately and proven extraordinary events.
Return leg excludedDelayed on the way out to Egypt? Find out in two minutes what you are owed.
How much Air Cairo pays on flights from Europe
Almost every route between Europe and Egypt is longer than 1,500 km, so the minimum is €400. From Spain or France to Luxor it rises to €600.
| Air Cairo flight | Distance | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Milan–Cairo | About 2,600 km | €400 |
| Barcelona–Luxor | About 3,300 km | €400 |
| Madrid–Luxor | About 3,700 km | €600 |
| Paris–Luxor | About 3,700 km | €600 |
Whether the package cost €600 or €2,000 makes no difference: only distance counts. Two adults and two children on a Paris–Luxor flight that landed four hours late can claim €2,400, as children with their own seats count like adults.
Air Cairo flight delayed: protecting your claim at departure
On charter flights to Egypt the delay often begins in Cairo or Hurghada: the aircraft due to collect you leaves late, and the departure board in Europe slips hour by hour. What to do:
- Keep your travel documents from the tour operator showing the Air Cairo flight number (it starts with SM).
- Ask the handling desk at the airport for written confirmation of the delay.
- Write down when the doors open on arrival: that is the time that counts, not touchdown.
- Keep receipts if nobody handed out water, meals or vouchers.
- Do not sign waivers giving up all claims in exchange for a discount on your next trip.
Care while you wait at a European airport
On Air Cairo flights from Europe, care is owed after 3 hours on routes up to 3,500 km and after 4 hours beyond that.
| Route | Meals and drinks after |
|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | 2 hours |
| Milan–Cairo and similar, up to 3,500 km | 3 hours |
| Madrid or Paris–Luxor, over 3,500 km | 4 hours |
| After 5 hours | You may drop the flight and get a refund |
Connecting in Cairo to Aswan or Luxor
On a single booking from Europe with an onward flight from Cairo to Aswan, what counts is your arrival in Aswan, even though the domestic leg is Egyptian. A domestic flight bought separately is never covered. Full details on Air Cairo delay compensation.
Air Cairo flight cancelled from Europe
With charter flights, cancellations usually reach you through the tour operator, who offers another day or departure airport.
Always owed, however much notice you had and whatever the cause.
Added if notice came under 14 days ahead and Air Cairo cannot show an extraordinary cause.
| Notice | Compensation |
|---|---|
| 14 days or more | Not owed |
| 7–13 days | Owed if the new flight leaves over 2 hours early or lands 4 hours or more late |
| Under 7 days | Owed if the new flight leaves over 1 hour early or lands 2 hours or more late |
Departure moved. If the tour operator tells you a few days before that your Air Cairo flight now leaves many hours earlier or later, EU case law may treat it as a cancellation. Read our page on Air Cairo cancellation compensation.
Air Cairo overbooking
It is rare, around 6 in 100 of our claims, but on flights packed with tour groups it happens. If you are refused boarding against your will at a European airport, you are owed compensation straight away, plus another flight or refund and care. More on Air Cairo overbooking.
Strikes and Air Cairo flights
If your delay was caused by a strike of Air Cairo's own staff, compensation is normally due, as the EU Court of Justice has made clear (case C-28/20). More common on flights from Europe is a strike by air traffic controllers or airport services: then no compensation is due, but Air Cairo still owes care and a new flight.
Air Cairo ignores or rejects your claim: the usual explanations
Repairs and inspections are part of the airline's normal operations.
EU Court of Justice, case C-549/07Compensation is owed by the airline operating the flight, even if you bought it in a package.
A closure ordered by the authorities can be extraordinary, but it must have actually hit that flight at that time.
That is right: on Air Cairo flights from Egypt to Europe the EU Regulation does not apply.
Return flights from Egypt and charters: what stays outside the rules
For an Egyptian airline, where the flight departs from decides everything:
- Europe → Egypt: covered by EU261.
- Egypt → Europe on Air Cairo: not covered by EU261.
- Domestic flights such as Aswan–Cairo: covered only as part of a single booking that started in Europe.
- Flights from the UK: departures from UK airports fall under UK261 instead, with amounts in pounds.
- Package holidays: the tour operator remains responsible to you for the rest of the package, separately from flight compensation.
Claiming from Air Cairo: on your own or with us
Air Cairo has no dedicated EU261 form: claims go through the contact section of aircairo.com, and replies can be slow or never arrive.
You write in English to an airline based in Cairo and, if nobody answers, turn to the national enforcement body of the country you flew from or the courts.
Give us the flight details, sign online and we act, up to court with our own lawyers. Fee of 25% + VAT only if you are paid; legal costs are ours even if the case is lost.
Already had a no from Air Cairo?
Forward it to us: if the flight left Europe and the reason does not hold, we send a letter before action.
Documents for the claim
- Travel documents or boarding passShowing the SM flight number and date.
- PassportThe one used for the trip, for each passenger.
- MessagesFrom the tour operator or the airline, plus receipts.
Deadlines for Air Cairo compensation
The Regulation sets no deadline: it depends on the applicable national law (EU Court of Justice, case C-139/11). An Egypt holiday from a few summers ago may still be in time: enter the flight date.
How quickly Air Cairo pays
If Air Cairo accepts, payment usually takes a few weeks. With a non-EU airline, though, a formal letter and court action are needed more often, and then it takes a few months. As soon as we receive the money, we pay you your share.
Lost luggage on an Air Cairo flight
Bags are covered by the Montreal Convention, including on flights from Egypt. On arrival, fill in a PIR at the baggage desk, then send a written claim within 7 days for damage or within 21 days of delivery for a delayed bag.
Air Cairo contact details
- Head office
- Air Cairo, Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt
- Claims
- Contact section of the official website aircairo.com
- Flight status
- aircairo.com or your tour operator
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