When a flight is canceled, each of its passengers has certain rights, and the airline that makes the flight acquires obligations to satisfy these rights. All this is regulated by the EU 261 directive, adopted in Europe in 2004.
The passenger of the canceled flight has the right to get money back for his ticket, on which he could not make the flight. If a series of flights was planned, and all tickets were purchased from the airline that canceled the flight, then the person has the right to demand compensation for the rest of the flights, too, if now he does not have time for them. Also, the passenger can get a free ticket from the airline to the airport of departure.
If the passenger of the canceled flight, as is most often the case, is primarily important to get to the destination, and not receive compensation, then he can demand from the airline a free ticket to where he needs, only for another flight, and at a convenient time. True, convenient, but from a reasonable position: if you ask for a ticket in a week or a month, the airline will probably refuse. Convenient means that if there is a daytime flight that suits you, then you can fly them, and not the one that is scheduled for early morning.
The passenger has the right to make the necessary calls, get free food and a hotel room, if necessary. This is done in the same way as if the airline had delayed the flight. He also gets the right to monetary compensation. But there are nuances. If you are notified of the cancellation of the flight no later than 2 weeks before the departure date, it is useless to claim compensation. If the flight for which you received a ticket in return arrives no later than 4 hours after the one that was canceled, the compensation is reduced by half.
If you are at the airport and your flight is canceled, the sequence of actions differs depending on whether you are a transit passenger. For non-transit passengers, you need to immediately go to the check-in counter, inquire about the reasons for the cancellation, the time of the next flight, and find out if the airline will provide you with a hotel. Immediately you need to re-register for the next flight or cancel the ticket. The baggage is either re-checked in if it has already been checked in, or it is removed from the flight and handed over to you. You may be given free food stamps; if this does not happen, you can keep all the checks and claim their compensation. True, there is a limitation - food must be "reasonably necessary", that is, a can of black caviar, probably, will not be paid for.
It is somewhat more difficult for transit passengers. The main problem is to find an airline representative who is necessarily somewhere nearby if the flight is definitely canceled. It can be located behind the counter (there are usually offices of major airlines in all large transit airports), at the exit of a canceled flight or other exit of your carrier's flight, or in a lounge owned by your company. If you are unable to locate a representative, please contact security, who will help you locate one.
You will need a representative to re-register for another flight, find out about the hotel and food, about what you need to reissue a ticket. If you do not have a visa at the transit point, find out what it takes to get out into the city in case of a long wait for the next flight. Do not let go of the representative until he meets all your requirements, including re-registering you and your luggage, and issuing a pillow and blanket.
Also ask the representative of the airline to issue you a certificate stating that the flight is canceled, which will indicate the date and time of departure. It can come in handy if a dispute arises with a refund.
