Brussels Airlines

Brussels Airlines, Africa, and the strike question

Brussels Airlines is Belgium’s flag carrier and part of the Lufthansa Group — a Star Alliance member built around its Brussels hub. Its signature is Africa: inherited from the old Sabena network, it’s Europe’s leading carrier to sub-Saharan Africa, flying to Kinshasa, Kigali, Entebbe, Luanda, Dakar, Nairobi and beyond, alongside a European short-haul network. As an EU (Belgian) airline, it’s covered by EU 261/2004 both leaving the EU and arriving into it — so the flight home from Africa is a €600 claim too.

And then there are the strikes. Brussels Airlines sits in two strike-prone worlds at once: the Lufthansa Group, with its own restive pilot and cabin-crew unions, and Belgium, which has frequent national general strikes that shut down Brussels Airport. The two have opposite outcomes — and telling them apart is the most valuable thing on this page.

When a Brussels Airlines strike pays — and when it doesn’t

The deciding question is whose strike it was:

• Brussels Airlines’ own staff — its pilots or cabin crew. The EU Court of Justice (in Airhelp v SAS) held that a strike by an airline’s own workforce is part of running an airline and is not an extraordinary circumstance. So a cancellation caused by a Brussels Airlines crew strike — like the June 2022 walkout that cancelled 315 flights — means you can claim €250–600.
• A Belgian national general strike, or an ATC or airport-staff strike — none of these are Brussels Airlines’ own workforce. They’re outside the airline’s control and usually are extraordinary, removing the cash (though the airline must still reroute or refund you and provide care). Belgium had several mass-cancellation strike days in 2025 — those fall on this side of the line.

Use the decoder to see how the reason you were given holds up:

What your Brussels Airlines claim is worth

EU 261 sets the amount by the great-circle distance of your flight:

Brussels Airlines’ European routes sit in the €250–€400 bands, while its African long-haul flights — and its US routes — are all €600. A flight that stays inside the EU is capped at €400, however far. Try a few:

Note Brussels → Lisbon (~1,719 km) is €400, but being intra-EU it’s capped there, never €600. The African routes — Kinshasa, Kigali — are the €600 signature.

Delays, connections and cancellations

• Delays. Reach your destination 3+ hours late for a reason within the airline’s control, and you’re owed €250–600. Measured at arrival.
• Connections. On a single booking through Brussels, compensation is based on the final-destination delay and the distance to it — so a missed Brussels connection onward to Africa is judged on the long-haul distance.
• Cancellations. A refund or rerouting, care, and — unless 14+ days’ notice or extraordinary circumstances — the per-passenger compensation on top.

Real example. A Brussels → Kinshasa flight is delayed 5 hours by a technical fault. Not extraordinary, over 3,500 km to a non-EU country → €600 per passenger. The same applies to the flight home, Kinshasa → Brussels, because Brussels Airlines is an EU carrier. Check a delayed flight →

Real example. A Brussels → Madrid flight is cancelled during a Brussels Airlines cabin-crew strike, rebooked next day. Own-staff strike (not extraordinary), under 1,500 km → €250 per passenger, plus rerouting and care. Check a cancelled flight →

How to claim from Brussels Airlines yourself

1. Gather your evidence — booking reference, boarding passes, flight number and date, the airline’s stated reason, and any receipts.
2. Confirm it qualifies — arrived 3+ hours late (or cancelled with under 14 days’ notice, or denied boarding); the cause wasn’t extraordinary (a Brussels Airlines own-staff strike is not extraordinary; a national or ATC strike is); you’re within the time limit.
3. Work out the amount from the distance to your final destination — €250, €400 or €600.
4. Submit the claim form. Use Brussels Airlines’ feedback / complaint form, citing EU 261/2004, the flight and the arrival delay.
5. Escalate if refused. Belgium’s enforcement body is the air passenger-rights service of the Federal Public Service Mobility and Transport — which also covers inbound flights from Africa — or hand the claim to a specialist.

Real Brussels Airlines scenarios

• African long-haul delay. Brussels → Kinshasa 5 hours late after a technical fault → €600 each; the return Kinshasa → Brussels is covered too.
• Own-staff strike. Brussels → Madrid cancelled by a cabin-crew strike → €250 each (own-staff strike), plus rerouting and care.
• Belgian national strike — the honest no. A nationwide general strike shuts Brussels Airport and cancels your flight → no compensation, but care and a refund or rerouting.
• Missed connection to Africa. A late feeder into Brussels causes a 4-hour-late arrival in Entebbe on one ticket → €600, to the final destination.

See real won cases and verdicts →.

Brussels Airlines at a glance

Founded in 2006 from the carriers that succeeded the bankrupt Sabena, Brussels Airlines is a Lufthansa Group company led by CEO Dorothea von Boxberg. It flies an Airbus A320-family short-haul fleet and an A330 long-haul fleet from Brussels, carrying around 8.4 million passengers in 2024 — with sub-Saharan Africa as its defining specialty. That African network is what makes a disrupted Brussels Airlines flight a high-value claim; the strike question is what makes so many of them, wrongly, go unclaimed.

Why hand your Brussels Airlines claim to Refundio

The own-staff-vs-national-strike distinction is exactly where these claims get refused — and where the law often sides with the passenger anyway. Refundio buys your claim and pays you upfront, usually within days, then takes Brussels Airlines on itself and escalates in Belgium where needed. No win, no fee.

Check your Brussels Airlines claim in 2 minutes →

Frequently asked questions

Brussels Airlines cancelled my flight because of a strike. Can I claim?

It depends who struck. If it was Brussels Airlines’ own pilots or cabin crew — like the June 2022 walkout that grounded 315 flights — then yes; an own-staff strike is not extraordinary, so you can claim €250–600. A Belgian national general strike or an ATC strike is outside the airline’s control and counts as extraordinary — no cash, but you still get care and a refund or rerouting.

How much compensation does Brussels Airlines pay?

€250 up to 1,500 km, €400 for 1,500–3,500 km, €600 long-haul over 3,500 km to a non-EU country. The African network (Kinshasa, Kigali, Entebbe, Luanda) is all €600. Intra-EU flights are capped at €400.

Is my Brussels Airlines flight back from Africa covered?

Yes. Brussels Airlines is an EU airline, so EU 261 covers it both ways. Your flight home from Kinshasa, Kigali or Nairobi is covered, even though it departs a non-EU airport — and these are the €600 band.

I missed my connection in Brussels. What am I owed?

On a single booking, compensation is based on the arrival delay at your final destination and the distance to it. A short delay into Brussels that leaves you 4 hours late into Entebbe can be worth €600 per person.

How do I claim compensation from Brussels Airlines?

Use Brussels Airlines’ online feedback / complaint form, citing EU 261/2004, your flight and the arrival delay. If refused, escalate to Belgium’s air passenger-rights service at the Federal Public Service Mobility and Transport — or hand it to Refundio.

How long do I have to claim from Brussels Airlines?

Under Belgian rules generally a few years. Older flights are often still claimable.