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7 Air Passenger Rights You Might Not Know About

Air-Passenger Rights
(Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

When something goes wrong on a trip, the first question many flyers ask is, “What are my rights?” The short answer is fairly simple: The U.S. and the European Economic Community (EEC) have established some very specific rights for air travelers. In addition, contracts of carriage between passengers and carriers establish some promised rights, but those heavily one-sided contracts seldom call for any specific compensation or enforcement teeth in the event the carrier fails to meet its “promises.” Either way, it’s important for passengers to know their rights when faced with air-travel snafus, from delayed flights to overbooked planes. The following is a primer on basic air-passenger rights in the U.S. and Europe.

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