Flight Cancellation due to aircraft with broken window

misuel1955

Would a broken window in a plane be classed as exceptional circumstances to not pay compensation or would this be a maintenance failure. We initially had an email from TUI that the flight was cancelled because a part had to be flown in and was not due to arrive until the following morning. Our flight was initially 10.50am but was rescheduled to 21.30 the next day. 

eskbanker

It's not necessarily a maintenance failure but it's also not necessarily exceptional circumstances!  The actual root cause of the window being broken is likely to be relevant, in that I'd see there being a difference between, say, a worn seal failing versus accidental (or even deliberate) damage, but the legal test is likely to involve the extent to which that root cause is deemed to be "an event which is inherent in the normal exercise of the activity of the air carrier concerned".

TELLIT01

If it was broken by bird strike, for instance, it would be exceptional circumstances.  If it was broken by somebody over tightening a screw/bolt it would not be.

bagand96

TELLIT01 said:

If it was broken by bird strike, for instance, it would be exceptional circumstances.  If it was broken by somebody over tightening a screw/bolt it would not be.

There was a court case back in 2015 against Thomas Cook I think where a judge ruled that bird strikes were not extraordinary circumstances.  However it seems that was superseded with a European Court ruling in 2017 that said they can be classed under extraordinary circumstances!

[Deleted User]

I was a pilot for over 35 years. Window failures can occur for a number of reasons which have nothing to do with poor maintenance or bird strikes. I recall one incident, at 41,000ft over the mid-Atlantic, when the outer layer of the windscreen in front of my seat shattered with a very loud bang. Aircraft windscreens are multi-layered so we were able to continue westwards for two sectors until we reached a suitable maintenance base. That said, damage to other windows may require an immediate fix before the next departure. 

All technical failures are covered in what is known as a Master Minimum Equipment List. The crew are legally mandated to refer to this document before despatch if failures occur.

CKhalvashi

[Deleted User] said:

I was a pilot for over 35 years. Window failures can occur for a number of reasons which have nothing to do with poor maintenance or bird strikes. I recall one incident, at 41,000ft over the mid-Atlantic, when the outer layer of the windscreen in front of my seat shattered with a very loud bang. Aircraft windscreens are multi-layered so we were able to continue westwards for two sectors until we reached a suitable maintenance base. That said, damage to other windows may require an immediate fix before the next departure. 

All technical failures are covered in what is known as a Master Minimum Equipment List. The crew are legally mandated to refer to this document before despatch if failures occur.

Getting technical here, the A320 MEL at a certain company with bases in the UK would not allow the aircraft to fly, so airline and type may be important here. You know what the worst case scenario of this can be as well as I do.

Not sure on either TUI's SOPs or those of (presumably) the 737 however there is no way reasonably IMO that an aircraft of any type should be pressurised for another 2 sectors in this case.

There is also no reason why a window should shatter under routine ops. I'd therefore be inclined to believe this is a 'duty of care' extraordinary circumstances issue.

misuel1955

All sorted. TUI paid the statutory compensation to everyone on the delayed flight

photome

misuel1955 said:

All sorted. TUI paid the statutory compensation to everyone on the delayed flight

did it take a year ?