Regulation (EC) No
261/2004 establishes the common rules on air passenger rights in cases of
denied boarding, flight cancellations or long delays by setting out the legal
requirements for care, assistance and compensation. While the Regulation has
enhanced airline accountability and passenger protection, its brevity – only
eighteen articles and twelve definitions – has left lacunae and produced
ambiguities, resulting in a barrage of legal disputes. For example, over eighty
cases have been adjudicated by the Court of Justice of the European Union
(CJEU). Despite these rulings offering interpretive guidance, questions remain
about the Regulation’s scope and application. One question is prompted by the
growing trend of passengers paying to travel with their animals inside the
cabin. Analysing primary and secondary EU law, including relevant CJEU
jurisprudence and industry practice, this paper will explore the different
debates as to whether the term ‘passenger’, as used in the Regulation, includes
animals travelling in the cabin. In doing so, the goal of the paper is to
contribute to the legal discourse on evolving passenger rights due to changing
consumer behaviour and airline practices, to see whether or to what degree
animals and their owners can benefit from the care, assistance and compensation
requirements found in the Regulation.