In case of disruption

If your flight is delayed, we will inform you about the delay and the new departure time via an SMS and/or e-mail, if we have your correct contact information. You can also find up to date flight information via the Finnair app, flight status updates on the website and on airport monitors.

In case of a longer delay, we will offer you a service voucher for refreshments and/or a meal. To receive a voucher, please follow the instructions sent via an SMS and/or e-mail or announced at the airport.

If you missed your connecting flight

• We will re-route you to your destination. As availability of alternative flights may be limited, re-routing may take some time.
• You will find your new travel plan through Manage booking or the Finnair app.
• We do our best to inform you about the changes in your connecting flight(s) already during the flight, and our ground crew will make sure that the transfer to your connecting flight goes fluently.
• Please note that if your journey includes other flights with a separate ticket, you should contact the issuing agency for any changes.

If your connection time is very tight

• Occasionally it is uncertain, whether you will be able to make to your connecting flight. If there is a chance to still catch the flight, our cabin crew or ground crew at the airport will advise you on what to do.
• In this situation it is necessary to proceed to the departure gate without delay. We understand that this may be a stressful situation for you and apologise for the inconvenience.
• If you miss your connecting flight regardless of your best efforts, our ground crew at the gate or at the transfer service desk will organise a new flight for you.

Sometimes flights are unfortunately cancelled. We will contact you via SMS and/or e-mail if your flight is cancelled. Please make sure that we have your correct contact information.

In case of cancellation, you normally have these options

• We will try our best to find you an alternative flight to your destination as soon as possible. Please allow us some time to do this, as flight availability may be limited. Once we have booked the new flight, you can find the updated travel plan in Manage booking and the Finnair app.
• If the new travel plan is not suitable for you, you can change your travel dates by some days via Manage booking.
• If you decide not to travel, you can cancel your whole booking and apply for a full refund of your unused flight ticket via Manage booking.
• If you need to change only some of the flights in your booking or only for some passengers, please contact our customer service.

Since an alternative flight or other means of transportation is sometimes not available on the same day, we will try to arrange hotel accommodation for you in addition to refreshments and/or a meal, if it is the responsibility of the airline. We do our best to find a hotel for you near the airport, but sometimes, due to limited availability, the hotel may be located further away.

Our ground crew will help to arrange accommodation for you if needed.

Like other airlines, we sometimes accept more bookings for our flights than there are seats in the aircraft. This is because of the likelihood that all customers with a booking don’t arrive to the flight. This is also called no-show. Using historical data on each flight, we are able to estimate the number of customers who are likely to travel, so it is rare that you wouldn’t have a seat and couldn’t for that reason travel on your original flight.

This is what happens if it appears that the flight is very full

• We look for volunteers to transfer to another flight in advance via e-mail or SMS or during the check-in.
• If we contact you in advance and you are willing to change your flight, just follow the instructions provided in the message sent to you and your booking will be changed to a new flight.
• Sometimes you can volunteer to change your flight in our check-in channels or be asked if you would be willing to volunteer at the check-in desk. In these situations we ask you to arrive to the airport and to the boarding gate normally, because there might be available seats on your original flight. Our gate agent checks the availability for you, and if needed helps you with a new booking and compensation related questions.
• If you volunteer to change your travel plans and don’t eventually have a seat on your original flight, we will find you the best possible alternative flight to your destination, take care of you and also compensate the possible delay and inconvenience.
• It is very rare that we would ask you to change your flight involuntarily. We are genuinely sorry, if this happened to you. We will of course find you the best possible alternative flight and compensate the delay and inconvenience.

There are letters SBY on my boarding pass and no seat number. What does it mean?

Letters SBY mean that you are on standby, as we were, for the time being, unable to confirm a seat for you on your flight. We look for volunteers to transfer to another flight, and ask you to come to the boarding gate normally, because it is very possible that there are available seats on your flight after all. Our gate agent checks the availability for you. If the unwanted happens and there wouldn’t be a seat for you, we will of course find you the best possible alternative flight and compensate the delay and inconvenience.

We sometimes lease aircraft from other airlines to cover for a temporary shortage of aircraft, which may be for example due to sudden aircraft damage or longer lasting maintenance.

Good to know

• When buying tickets through our website, the operating airline is shown on the ‘Select Flights’ page.
• If you have already made a booking on any of the flights which is operated with a changed carrier, we will do our best to inform you about the change via SMS and/or e-mail. Please note that the change can sometimes happen with a short notice.
• Normally the Finnair service concept is followed also on flights operated by another airline. The cabin crew can come either from Finnair or the operating airline.
• If you want to change your travel plan due to a change of carrier, you can change your travel date or cancel your flight and get a full refund for your unused ticket by contacting our Customer Care.
• You will find more information about the service on flights with a changed carrier on our Travel updates page.

We are sorry if your bag was left behind or damaged during your journey. Please proceed to our Lost, delayed or damaged baggage page and see the next steps.