Vueling is lying to me about my compensation claim
On May 16, 2026, I had flight 2227 from Seville to Barcelona. When it was time to board, we were told that the plane had technical problems and that we would not be able to board. We could see technicians working on the front part of the aircraft. After 1 hour and 40 minutes, we were finally called to board the plane.
We boarded, the takeoff began, and just as we were about to lift off, the pilot aborted the takeoff and we experienced a very abrupt braking maneuver. The pilot announced that there were problems with the measurement systems and that we would not be taking off on that aircraft. We returned to the terminal, and after a lot of uncertainty due to the lack of answers and nearly 7 hours of delay, another plane and another crew finally arrived, and we were able to travel.
I filed a claim with Vueling yesterday, and they replied with the following:
“In your case, the delay was caused by a bird strike affecting the aircraft, which forced us to take safety measures that led us to make this decision.
As this was considered an extraordinary circumstance, which could not have been avoided even after taking all reasonable measures, under Article 5.3 of European Regulation (EC) 261/2004 and the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, you are not entitled to any compensation payment.”
I honestly don’t understand how they dare to lie so blatantly. If anyone has gone through something similar and was able to successfully pursue their claim, I’d really appreciate any advice or help.