Flight delayed or cancelled? Airlines may soon compensate travellers

For compensation to be given to passengers, the delay or cancellation has to be the fault of the airline.

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New Delhi: Airlines could soon be made to compensate flyers if their flights are delayed or cancelled. Jayant Sinha, MoS Aviation, told mediapersons on Tuesday that the government is mulling making it mandatory for domestic aviation companies to be more accountable to their respective passengers.

Sinha said that for a flight delay, the concerned airline could compensate passengers in several ways which would be outlined shortly. And in case the flight is cancelled, passengers would be entitled to the compensation or be refunded the complete cost of ticket. Sinha however did add that it has to be the fault of airlines for the penalties to be imposed on it - possibly hinting that delays or cancellation due to circumstances like weather may not come under the ambit.

Currently, domestic cancellation charges according to the DGCA are Rs 3000 or base fare added with fuel surcharge per ticket - whichever may be lower.

Several airline companies have argued that often, cancellation and delays are not their fault and any heavy penalty rule could be possibly misinterpreted.