Routes / MAD–LPA
1,766 km great circle · Within the EU, over 1,500 km
Madrid MAD to Gran Canaria LPA delay compensation
Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport to Gran Canaria Airport is 1,766 km by great circle, a domestic Spain route. Under EU261 that is €400 per passenger (flights within the EU over 1,500 km), and under UK261 £350, when the rule applies and you arrive 3+ hours late.
- 1Madrid MAD
- 2Gran Canaria LPA
- 3Great circle 1,766 km
- 4EU261 intra-EU €400
Which rules cover MAD–LPA
Madrid → Gran Canaria
Whatever the airline, this direction is covered by EU261 (the flight departs from the EU (Article 3(1)(a)), whatever the airline). On a UK airline it is also under UK261. If the airline refuses, the complaint goes to Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea (AESA), Passenger Rights Division for EU261 (the flight leaves Spain) or the airline's dispute scheme or the UK CAA for UK261.
Gran Canaria → Madrid
Whatever the airline, this direction is covered by EU261 (the flight departs from the EU (Article 3(1)(a)), whatever the airline). On a UK airline it is also under UK261. If the airline refuses, the complaint goes to Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea (AESA), Passenger Rights Division for EU261 (the flight leaves Spain) or the airline's dispute scheme or the UK CAA for UK261.
Gran Canaria Airport is in the Canary Islands, where the EU Treaties apply (Article 355(1) TFEU), so for EU261 it is an EU airport like any on the mainland, and this domestic flight is an intra-EU flight.
Because both EU and UK rules can reach this route, a passenger may find two rules covering the same trip. Each excludes people already compensated under the other's law for the same event, so the claim is made once, under whichever the airline accepts — in money terms €400 or £350.
What you could be owed by hours late
Arrival delay at LPA (or MAD on the return), for a delay caused by the airline, per passenger, where each rule applies:
| Hours late | EU261 | UK261 |
|---|---|---|
| 2 hours | €0 | £0 |
| 3 h 30 min | €400 | £350 |
| 4 h 30 min | €400 | £350 |
| 6 h 30 min | €400 | £350 |
| 9 h 30 min | €400 | £350 |
Madrid and Gran Canaria are both in the EU and 1,766 km apart, so the intra-EU rule applies: a flat €400 from 3 hours late, with no long-haul reduction.
The distance and the band
EU261 and UK261 measure distance "by the great circle route method" between the departure airport and the final destination. From the published coordinates of Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (40.493407, -3.572249) and Gran Canaria Airport (27.9319, -15.3866) that is 1,766 km. The nearest band boundary is 1,500 km, 266 km below this route, so the band is not in doubt. Among the 13 routes on this site in the within the EU, over 1,500 km band, it is number 10 by length.
Other routes from Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (LEMD) on this site: Barcelona (483 km), Tenerife (1,824 km), Miami (7,106 km), New York (5,760 km), Newark (5,788 km), Chicago (6,744 km), Boston (5,473 km), Dallas (7,972 km), Los Angeles (9,385 km), London (1,244 km), Paris (1,062 km), Rome (1,331 km), Lisbon (513 km), Brussels (1,314 km), Seville (396 km).
Gran Canaria Airport (GCLP, Gran Canaria, Spain) appears on no other route on this site.
If MAD–LPA is only one leg of your booking, measure to the final destination instead: a connection that makes you late at the end is compensated over the whole journey's distance.
If the flight is cancelled
Cancelled with less than 14 days' notice and re-routed to arrive 6 hours late, an EU261 passenger is owed €400 here. If the replacement left within the allowed early margin and landed within the re-routing window, nothing is owed; if it landed within 3 hours but outside those windows, the airline may pay half — €200. On a cancellation you may instead take a refund within 7 days.
Help at the airport while you wait
On a flight of this length, meals and refreshments are owed once the departure is 3 hours late under EU261 and UK261, and a hotel with transport if you have to stay overnight — whatever caused the delay. Keep receipts for anything you buy: it is claimed back separately from any compensation.
Claiming on this route
Claim from the operating airline directly — it costs nothing.
EU261: If the airline does not reply within two months, or the reply is unsatisfactory, complain to the national enforcement body of the country where the incident happened.
UK261: If the airline's final answer is unsatisfactory, or it has not answered within eight weeks, go to the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) body the airline belongs to, or to the CAA's Passenger Advice and Complaints Team if it belongs to none.
Claim pages of airlines based in Spain (whether they fly this exact route varies by season):
Airport coordinates: OurAirports country file (ES). Complaint bodies: European Commission NEB list. Rules: Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (EUR-Lex); UK Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Article 7 (legislation.gov.uk). Checked 2026-10-21. General information, not legal advice.