A Ryanair passenger notified about a seven hour delay on his Flight FR9431 from Rome's Ciampino airport to Dublin was handed an A4 sheet from Ryanair called 'EU Regulation 261/2004 relating to boarding, cancellation and delay' when he dared inquire about passenger compensation for the lengthy delay. Rather than inform the passenger what he was entitled to, the sheet gave all the instances where Ryanair did not give compensation. The most useful sentence was that "the compensation for delays and cancellation under this new legislation only applies in cases that are within the control of the airline". After perusing this, the pax revisited the Ciampino check-in desk where the supervisor told him that: "as Ryanair is not part of IATA (International Air Transport Association) it is not required to pay compensation." The supervisor was then informed that the inquirer was a business reporter who regularly wrote about airline aviation. He asked the supervisor her name. She declined to give it. He asked again and again she declined. With his more trusty Blackberry, the reporter quickly got all the information he needed. As he'd suspected, passengers on flights between Rome and Dublin which are delayed by more than three hours, are entitled to €400 in compensation. But he could not glean this information from the airline, despite his repeated inquiry of its representatives. He asked to see the duty manager. The manager eventually, after much unsubtle persuasion, produced a booklet in Italian purporting to relate what the passengers' entitlements were. The reporter then called a meeting in the terminal building of the 183 delayed passengers and cheerfully informed them of their entitlements. The reporter later interviewed the Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary. O'Leary informed him that they'd not be getting a red cent, pointing out that whatever the reason for the delay, the airline can portray it as a safety concern - all of which means that the airline doesn't have to cough up. The Ryanair Press Office later responded with a bolstering of their boss's claim: "No monetary compensation is due under EU/261 in the case of flight delays." The reporter is now taking his case to the regulator and the highest echelons of the EU. It should get interesting - as O'Leary rarely loses his litigations. But then again, the EU regulator is no paper tiger.