Türkiye introduced sweeping new regulations requiring airlines to compensate passengers for significant flight delays on Tuesday, aligning its air travel protections more closely with European Union standards and global trends.
Under rules published by the Turkish Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM) in the Official Gazette, airlines must now provide monetary compensation to passengers when flights are delayed by more than three hours due to technical or operational reasons.
The compensation structure varies based on flight distance, with domestic flights requiring payments of 100 euros per affected passenger.
For international flights, the requirements escalate based on distance: 250 euros for flights up to 1,500 kilometers, 400 euros for flights between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometers, and 600 euros for flights exceeding 3,500 kilometers.
All compensation will be paid in Turkish lira, calculated using the Turkish Central Bank’s exchange rate on the day of payment.
The new regulations position Türkiye among nations with robust passenger protection frameworks, though global approaches to air passenger rights vary significantly.
The European Union maintains one of the world’s most comprehensive systems, offering similar compensation levels for delays and cancellations. In contrast, the United States focuses primarily on overbooked flights, allowing compensation of up to $1,550 for involuntarily bumped passengers.
Canada has taken a middle path, implementing a tiered system that provides between 400 and 1,000 Canadian dollars for delays within airline control, while India’s framework mandates payments ranging from 5,000 to 20,000 rupees depending on circumstances.
The Turkish regulations demonstrate a growing global trend toward strengthening air passenger protections, though enforcement approaches and compensation levels continue to vary significantly by region.
While some nations, like Australia, rely primarily on airline-specific policies, others are moving toward more standardized, government-mandated protections.
The new rules fall under Türkiye’s “Regulation on the Rights of Passengers Traveling by Air,” marking a significant step forward in passenger protection in the country’s aviation sector.
