The Icelandic Transport authority has ruled that Icelandair should compensate twelve passengers a sum of 5.200 euros because of delays and cancelations of flights this summer. Icelandair blamed the air traffic controller strike for the delays and maintained the situation was beyond the airline’s control and not within it’s power to keep the schedule.
However the Icelandic Transport authority ruled that the “uncontrollable situation” had in fact passed when the delays and cancelations in question took place. Two of the passengers booked on flights with Icelandair from Washington Frankfurt with a stopover in Keflavik on 3 June complained to the transport authorities. Their take of from Washington was delayed resulting in missed flights in Keflavik airport. They made it to their destination seven hours behind schedule. They made it to their destination seven hours behind schedule with a Lufthansa flight. Icelandair offered the explanations that the delays were do to the strikes of air traffic control. The passengers refuted that argument pointing out that other airlines were able to be on time that day at that time. The Icelandic Transport authority ruled that the situation was not beyond Icelandair’s control and further more, the airline had not explained to the passengers their legal rights, as law binds them to. The remaining ten passengers had all booked flights on 26 June either from Keflavik to Frankfurt of from Frankfurt to Keflavik. Icelandair cancelled the flight from Keflavik resulting in the further cancelation of the flight from Frankfurt later that evening.
The airline maintained the explanation that due to a shortage of air traffic controllers the flight from Keflavik was delayed resulting in a landing ban in Frankfurt, as the Frankfurt airport closes from 11pm to 5am. Therefore the airline was forced to cancel both flights.
One of the passengers said in his response to the transport authority that the answers from Icelandair were inconsistent, on the one hand they were blaming shortage of staff and on the other hand the strike. Another passenger pointed out that a flight on that same date and at the same time had been on time and that the strike of air traffic controlee was over on 24 June. The Icelandic transport authority found that the uncontrollable situation cited by Icelandair had passed and there for the airline was made to pay compensations to the passengers.