Sturgeon ruling — 3 hours delay = compensation

The Sturgeon ruling is a 19 November 2009 European Court of Justice judgement in the joined cases C-402/07 (Sturgeon v. Condor Flugdienst) and C-432/07 (Böck v. Air France). It is the most important case law under EU 261/2004.

What did the Court decide? Art. 7 EU 261/2004 expressly grants compensation only for cancellation. The Court held that passengers whose flight operated but whose final arrival was delayed 3 hours or more are legally in the same position as cancelled passengers and can claim the same compensation — €250, €400 or €600 depending on distance.

Why does this matter? Before 2009, airlines could dodge compensation by labelling a flight "delayed" rather than "cancelled". Sturgeon closed that loophole: what counts is the actual arrival delay at the final destination.

Confirmed in Nelson (C-581/10). The Court reaffirmed Sturgeon in 2012 — airlines had asked it to reverse. The Court refused and stood by the 3-hour threshold.

Practical: if your flight arrived 3+ hours late, cite explicitly in your claim letter "Sturgeon ruling, ECJ Joined Cases C-402/07 and C-432/07, 19 November 2009". Our EU 261 letter does that automatically.