The United States Department of Transportation announced this Tuesday that TAP must pay $126.5 million (about €122 million) in mandatory restitution and $1.1 million (about one million euros) in fines.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said TAP was one of six airlines sanctioned by the U.S. to compensate “hundreds of thousands of passengers” whose flights were “cancelled or significantly altered.” Reuters🇧🇷
In total, these “historic actions” against six airlines, including the Portuguese DAP, translate into 602 million euros for passengers and seven million euros in fines. NoticeThe US department notes that since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, travelers have received a “flood” of complaints that their flights have been canceled or changed.
“If a flight is canceled, passengers requesting a refund should be paid immediately,” Buttigieg said. “Whenever that doesn’t happen, we will work to hold airlines accountable on behalf of American travelers,” and the U.S. transportation secretary also advocated for refunds. “Canceling a flight is frustrating enough when you don’t have to wait months to get a refund,” he said.
Of the six companies sanctioned, North American low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines was fined more than two million euros and ordered to pay more than 215 million euros in restitution. Air India has to pay €117 million in compensation to passengers and €1 million in fines.
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