By Linsey B. Knerl

While my travels have been fairly local lately, I do have friends and associates who fly often – many of them using British Airways or Virgin Atlantic for their “long haul” travel. A recent class-action lawsuit may get them back a few extra dollars towards their next flight (or to check in a bag, anyway).

The U.S. federal court brought a lawsuit against the two airlines, claiming that both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic unlawfully conspired to fix the fuel surcharge element of airline tickets for long-haul travel. (Most of British Airways flights between the U.S. and non-E.U. destinations are considered “long-haul.” All of Virgin Atlantic flights are “long-haul.”) As a result, both airlines will pay $59 million in refunds to U.S. customers. The refund itself will vary, as it is calculated at 33.3% of the fuel surcharge paid on tickets bought between August 11, 2004 and March 23, 2006. For most people, this is a small refund in the amount of $7 to $34 per passenger.

The official claim website, www.airpassengerrefund.com, has all the details for claiming your refund. Like most class-action lawsuits, if you wish not to participate, you can exclude yourself from the action (no later than September 12, 2008) and retain your rights to sue either airline (or both) personally for damages. Claimants may register to have a claim packet mailed to them by filling out the online form. You can also file your claim online beginning July 14, 2008. Customers have until December 31, 2012 to file their claims (perhaps one of the biggest windows for claims I have ever seen).

There is a limit of one refund claim per eligible ticket, but there is no limit to the number of tickets claimed for. To receive your refund, all you need to provide is the name of the airline (Virgin or British), passenger name, date of departure, and origin/destination city or flight number. You can also claim via your frequent flyer number with either airline or your ticket number.

Perhaps the coolest part of this lawsuit (if there is a cool part) is that it gives you the option to receive a refund check OR have the funds direct deposited into a banking account. (I suppose that this would be a good option for corporate accounts that claimed many refunds at a time.)

There is another class-action lawsuit of the international variety. Customers who purchased Air Cargo shipping services within, to, or from either the U.S. or Canada between January 1, 2000 and September 11, 2006 are also looking at a refund. The official website, www.aircargosettlement.com, contains all the details. Basically, this is another violation of price-fixing and anti-trust law between Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Lufthansa Cargo AG, and Swiss International Airlines, Ltd (along with several others). U.S. claimants in this suit who participate before the February 2009 deadline can expect to receive a small piece of the anticipated $5.3 million settlement fund.