Hello - I'm asking for some advice from AF regulars, please.

I have a one way trip soon FRA-CDG-CFE. It is a short connection (1h10). I am relaxed about this - it's all terminal 2G, I'll have no checked bags, etc. But if it doesn't work, I'd rather have thought about my options in advance.

If I miss the connection, there's not another flight for another 9-10 hours, so unless the first flight is very late, I think my preference would be to make my own way to Clermont-Ferrand by train.

My question is (assuming that the cause of the delay is attributable to AF and that EU 261 compensation applies), would simply abandoning the journey at CDG and buying a train ticket affect my eligibility for EU 261 delayed arrival compensation? Is there anything I would need to do or say to AF before doing so in order to protect my position? And - even better - would AF offer a re-route on SNCF?

Merci � tous!

Yes, there will definitely be implications if you do not engage with them and unilaterally rebook yourself, you will not be eligible for late arrival compensation.

The argument that they wouldn't have got you to your destination is irrelevant- you didn't even consider what their rebooking option would be.

They won't.

Thanks - yes, fair point - though presumably once their offer has been, there would be no harm in declining it and making own arrangements?

Ah well, thank you for confirming.

With your trip starting in Germany you should be able to get some compensation and a good lawyer.

If you miss your connection at CDG, you can instead of Re-routing take advantage of your right to Reimbursement of the part of the journey not made. You will simply say to the staff that the journey no longer serves the purpose in relation to the original travel plan, per Article 8 Paragraph 1(a). You will request reimbursement for the part of the journey not made and make your own arrangement.
This will make collecting compensation more difficult though, so you might take that into account when making the decision.

Makes sense, thanks. In this hypothetical instance the compensation would be worth more than the reimbursable amount - but not so much more that sitting at CDG for 9 hours would be preferable to getting the RER to Bercy and jumping on a train.

I was thinking especially in relation to the reason for the delay. If you are delayed from FRA for reasons of weather for example, you are not getting compensated no matter what, so there's no point in even considering it. If the plane broke down in FRA, and took 5 hours to fix, on the other hand, might be worth staying the extra 4 hours in CDG to get the 250.

Oh definitely in that case. Thank you for helping bring some clarity to my thoughts - all of which is hopefully nothing more than a hypothetical consideration. But I am a fan of contingency planning - or at least of not making bad decisions under "pressure".

As noted by others, it�s always better to discuss with the airline. Choosing to unilaterally curtail the trip and assuming you �would� have been sufficiently late for compensation makes you far more vulnerable. Once you discuss wit them and they highlight the options you can consider the alternatives including journey in vain, but if you choose to voluntarily transform your fra-cfe into fra-cdg, assuming that the delay to cdg is under the compensation threshold, you can�t expect them to pay easily based on hypotheticals. Things could be slightly different if your flight is cancelled rather than delayed.

Always possible the reason for any delay into CDG also delays your onwards flight from CDG.... this worked in my favour at AMS a few months ago - I'd upgraded to J at check-in, I then saw a delay and missed connection approaching so proactively rebooked myself via platinum line, only to then be rebooked to my original (late) flight in economy, and KL staff at AMS rebooked into J. It would probably have been a lot less hassle had I let things run automatically in the background!

Happy travels 😎

This is not correct. Bad weather is not a carte blanche to have the OP wait 9h for a short connection to CFE. If AF does not come up with the next available alternative there is compensation due, at least with point of departure in Germany.

There is no other alternative. CFE is now very poorly served. Basically, only 3 daily flights from CDG and that's it.

Are there additional flights from Orly, perhaps on a different airline (LCC/ULCC)?