Calgary: what a delayed flight pays, depending on the airline’s size
From Calgary the same six-hour delay can pay $700 or $250: the size of the airline counts as much as the hours lost.
Your compensation · YYC · Calgary → YYZ · Toronto
$250
per passenger, no deduction · owed
- APPR (Canada)$250 · owed
Small Canadian carrier, cause within its control.
- Great-circle distance
- 2,689 km
- Distance band
- 1,500 to 3,500 km
- Claim to the airline (APPR, one year)
- 22 October 2027
Write the claim letter to the airline
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · law as of October 22, 2026 · 4,008 airports (OurAirports)
Flights from and to Calgary International follow the Air Passenger Protection Regulations, which split airlines into two categories. A large carrier, one that carried at least two million passengers worldwide in each of the two preceding calendar years, owes $400, $700 or $1,000 when you reach your destination three, six or nine hours late for a cause within its control that is not required for safety. Every other airline counts as a small carrier and owes $125, $250 or $500 for the same delays, with lighter rebooking duties. The category is assessed per airline, not per route, so check which carrier actually operates the flight on your boarding pass. Winter storms on the Prairies and chinook wind shear are outside the airline’s control: no compensation, but rebooking and information remain owed. Requests must reach the airline within one year of the flight.
Large and small carriers side by side
| Arrival delay | Large carrier | Small carrier |
|---|---|---|
| 3 h to under 6 h | $400 | $125 |
| 6 h to under 9 h | $700 | $250 |
| 9 h or more | $1,000 | $500 |
| Refund instead of travel | $400 | $125 |
The gap is widest at the top of the scale: a full day lost costs a large airline $1,000 and a small one $500. The calculator above is set on a small carrier; switch the option to see the large-carrier amount for the same flight.
Calgary: small carrier, amount by delay
Minimum compensation
$250
| Refunded instead | $125 |
| Denied boarding, same delay | $1,800 |
Cause within the carrier’s control and not required for safety.
Routes from Calgary
| Destination | Distance | Regime |
|---|---|---|
| Edmonton International Airport (YEG) | 245 km | APPR |
| Vancouver International Airport (YVR) | 687 km | APPR |
| Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) | 2,689 km | APPR |
| Halifax / Stanfield International Airport (YHZ) | 3,744 km | APPR |
| Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) | 1,973 km | APPR |
| Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) | 1,674 km | APPR |
| Cancún International Airport (CUN) | 4,091 km | APPR |
| London Heathrow Airport (LHR) | 7,014 km | APPR, plus UK261 on a UK airline |
On the way back from London, the UK rules apply to every airline and may pay more; you claim under one regime only, as section 86.11(3) bars a double payment.
From Calgary: amount by destination
APPR
$400
| Distance | 245 km |
Winter on the Prairies
Blizzards, freezing fog and wind shear close the airport for hours and push crews past their duty limits. The first part is weather, outside the airline’s control under section 10 of the Regulations. A delay the next day blamed on yesterday’s storm only stays outside its control if the airline took all reasonable measures to recover. Ask for that explanation in writing and wait the 30 days set out in the Agency’s guidance before filing a complaint.