Airlines may get volcanic ash payouts

Commission discusses financial support for carriers affected by flight ban.

Airlines may receive compensation for the losses they suffered when governments imposed flight bans throughout the EU because of a volcanic ash cloud, the European Commission said today.

Siim Kallas, the European commissioner for transport, said the commission believed that the situation “may justify support measures to offset the losses occurred”.

But he insisted that any government aid should be in line with EU rules. It should be granted on the basis of uniform criteria and must be related to the crisis, Kallas said. He did not give a figure for possible compensation.

The International Air Transport Association says its members lost more than €1 billion as planes were grounded for six days because of fears the ash would stall engines.

Kallas also said that airlines should meet their responsibilities to compensate stranded passengers for the cost of food and accommodation. “No airline company should benefit from a competitive advantage by avoiding its legal obligations,” he said.

The Commission said that more work was needed at international level to assess risk and take co-ordinated action in the event of similar crises. He said the Commission would set up an expert group to look at risk management and would prepare a proposal for a new legal framework for a meeting of the International Civil Aviation Organization in September.