You are most likely to recover consequential damages if you can prove that the flight delay or cancellation was solely for the convenience of the airline or to save the airline money. Just before a flight is scheduled to depart, a large number of passengers cancel. The airline, knowing it will lose a great deal of money flying a practically empty airplane across the country, cancels the flight and puts the passengers on a later flight in the afternoon. In this circumstance, the airline is placing its commercial interests ahead of the interests of the passengers and could be responsible for paying the passengers' consequential damages. International Flights Recovering damages for an international flight delay is very difficult if the delay was caused by anything other than the airline's overbooking.
Airlines have a number of ways to avoid paying damages for any flight delay.
A passenger who had just returned from Europe was delayed over four hours on his flight from New York to Chicago. Although the passenger claimed that the New York to Chicago leg was exclusively domestic, the court ruled that because that flight was part of a larger series of flights including international transit, his flight between New York and Chicago was international travel and was therefore covered by the Warsaw Convention. Since the delay was caused by mechanical difficulties, the airline was not liable for damages caused by the delay because the repairs were necessary to ensure the safety of the passengers. Courts have also ruled that an airline can limit its liability if it can show that the damage suffered was contributed to or caused by the passenger's negligence. If your international flight is delayed, you may be able to persuade the airline that it should cover direct costs caused by the delay such as meal, hotel or telephone expenses.