Routes / YVR–FRA
8,063 km great circle · Over 3,500 km
Vancouver YVR to Frankfurt FRA delay compensation
Vancouver International Airport to Frankfurt Main Airport is 8,063 km by great circle, Canada to Germany. Under EU261 that is €600 per passenger, and under UK261 £520, when the rule applies and you arrive 3+ hours late.
- 1Vancouver YVR
- 2Frankfurt FRA
- 3Great circle 8,063 km
- 4EU261 band €600
Which rules cover YVR–FRA
Vancouver → Frankfurt
Whatever the airline, this direction is covered by APPR (the flight departs from Canada (Canada Transportation Act s. 86.11(1))). On an EU airline it is also under EU261. On a UK airline it is also under UK261. If the airline refuses, the complaint goes to the Canadian Transportation Agency for APPR, Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA), National Enforcement Body Air Passenger Rights for EU261 (the flight arrives in Germany from outside the EU) or the airline's dispute scheme or the UK CAA for UK261.
Frankfurt → Vancouver
Whatever the airline, this direction is covered by EU261 (the flight departs from the EU (Article 3(1)(a)), whatever the airline) and APPR (the flight arrives in Canada (Canada Transportation Act s. 86.11(1))). If the airline refuses, the complaint goes to Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA), National Enforcement Body Air Passenger Rights for EU261 (the flight leaves Germany) or the Canadian Transportation Agency for APPR.
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 €600 or £520.
What you could be owed by hours late
Arrival delay at FRA (or YVR on the return), for a delay caused by the airline, per passenger, where each rule applies:
| Hours late | EU261 | UK261 | APPR large | APPR small |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 hours | €0 | £0 | $0 | $0 |
| 3 h 30 min | €300 | £260 | $400 | $125 |
| 4 h 30 min | €600 | £520 | $400 | $125 |
| 6 h 30 min | €600 | £520 | $700 | $250 |
| 9 h 30 min | €600 | £520 | $1,000 | $500 |
At 8,063 km this is a long-haul flight, so the first hour of compensation is reduced: arriving 3 to 4 hours late pays €300 or £260, and the full €600/£520 starts at 4 hours. Canada's amounts rise with the delay instead, at 6 and 9 hours.
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 Vancouver International Airport (49.193901, -123.183998) and Frankfurt Main Airport (50.026706, 8.55835) that is 8,063 km. The nearest band boundary is 3,500 km, 4,563 km below this route, so the band is not in doubt. Among the 148 routes on this site in the over 3,500 km band, it is number 21 by length.
Other routes from Vancouver International Airport (CYVR) on this site: Toronto (3,346 km), Los Angeles (1,741 km), Calgary (687 km), San Francisco (1,289 km), Seattle (205 km), Montréal (3,682 km), London (7,579 km).
Other routes from Frankfurt Main Airport (EDDF) on this site: London (654 km), Munich (299 km), New York (6,189 km), Chicago (6,971 km), Washington (6,550 km), Newark (6,211 km), Los Angeles (9,322 km), San Francisco (9,149 km), Atlanta (7,409 km), Dallas (8,258 km), Houston (8,402 km), Denver (8,089 km), Boston (5,889 km), Toronto (6,344 km), Vienna (621 km), Athens (1,816 km), Budapest (836 km), Lisbon (1,873 km), Rome (958 km).
If YVR–FRA 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 €600 here. If the replacement left within the allowed early margin and landed within the re-routing window, nothing is owed; if it landed within 4 hours but outside those windows, the airline may pay half — €300. 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 4 hours late under EU261 and UK261, and a hotel with transport if you have to stay overnight — whatever caused the delay. Canada's rules add standards of treatment — food, drink and, overnight, a hotel — when the delay is within the airline's control, including safety-related delays (ss. 11–12). 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.
APPR: If the airline refuses or does not answer, file a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency.
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 Canada or Germany (whether they fly this exact route varies by season):
- Lufthansa: Compensation in the event of flight delay and cancellation
- Air Canada: Flight delays, cancellations and disruptions (Air Canada)
- WestJet: Flight delay and cancellation claims (WestJet)
- Porter Airlines: Flight Delay Compensation (Porter)
- Air Transat: Claim for flight disruption (Air Transat)
- Flair Airlines: Compensation requests (Flair)
Airport coordinates: OurAirports country file (CA); OurAirports country file (DE). Complaint bodies: European Commission NEB list. Rules: Air Passenger Protection Regulations, SOR/2019-150 (Justice Laws); 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.