Due to the high price of jet fuel as a consequence of the continuing conflict in the Middle East, global airlines have had to cancel approximately 13,000 flights during May. Almost 2 million seats were also removed from the schedules with new airline data released. The timing of these cancellations is significant because they occurred right before the extremely busy UK half-term holiday at the end of the month. Despite the magnitude of disruption, it represents a relatively small percentage of the total amount of global travel.
As a result, Air India will also scale back its international flight schedule through the month of July as the high price of jet fuel combined with airspace restrictions will make it much more difficult to fly numerous routes, especially between India and North America. Approximately 100 flights per day may be impacted by this reduction. This decision comes from a tremendous amount of financial pressure being experienced by all airlines in the USA, as the Indian airline has expressed its concerns to the Government about increasing costs and continued airspace restrictions directly impairing operations.
Airlines reduce capacity across major hubs like Istanbul and Munich amid cost pressures
As per BBC, the most significant cuts to flight operations have occurred in large European regions, including Istanbul and Munich, according to data collected from airline analyst Cirium. Many Airlines have been evaluating routes and altering services according to whether they have low demand or high operational expenses. This represents one of many trends in the industry trying to find a balance between increased expenses due to economic conditions and fluctuating travel demand across countries.
Airlines bodies say operations remain stable despite cancellations and schedule changes
Airline associations have been quick to reassure passengers on the continued operation of flights and lack of major issues with aviation fuel supply as examples of recent announcements from a commercial airline association representing British airlines. They also expressed their support for government contingency plans to allow airlines to cancel flights without losing their valuable time slots for landing at busy airports. Many view this flexibility as essential in helping airline companies react to unexpected situations without incurring large penalties.
Airlines cancellations described as ‘marginal’ with UK summer travel largely unaffected
The number of flight cancellations globally, according to Advantage Travel Partnership, is currently estimated at the low level of approximately 1%. Additionally, routes to popular summer destination from United Kingdom are unaffected. According to BBC Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive stated that, “So far, there have been marginal cancellations to flights; therefore, customers can continue to book major UK city breaks as well as travel from key summer sun destinations with confidence.”
Airlines face sharp rise in jet fuel prices as war impact doubles costs in weeks
Airlines are faced with soaring Jet Fuel prices due to the conflict there; since the beginning of the Iran War, jet fuel costs have exceeded their levels prior to mid-March by 3.6 times. In Libya, for example, the price of a tonne of jet fuel went from $831 in March to 1,838 in April . While it is too early for airlines to have notable shortages compared with other major ground fuel products, analysts are concerned that further disruptions to supply chains due to the war in Iran may result into shortages of aviation fuels within a matter of weeks.
Airlines respond with higher ticket prices and trimmed summer schedules across regions
Due to the recent increase in operational costs, airlines have raised fares. Many major carriers;
including: Air India, Air France, KLM, Air Canada, Delta Air Lines and SAS have announced reductions to their summer schedule. Simultaneously, Wizz Air’s Chief Executive stated that, in some areas of Europe, airfares are decreasing as airlines attempt to entice customers that are uncertain of travelling.
In conjunction, Lufthansa plans to further reduce their capacity due to continued fuel concerns and demand shift trends
As such, Lufthansa has publicly stated that they will eliminate 20,000 flights between now and the end of October. This demonstrates that airlines appear to be preparing for a sustained period of adaptation instead of an immediate disruption. Earlier the head of the International Energy Agency cautioned that Europe could experience a jet fuel shortage by June unless additional sources of supply could be secured or developed.
Khalid Qasid is a media enthusiast with a strong interest in documentary filmmaking. He holds a Master’s degree in Convergent Journalism from AJK MCRC. He has also written extensively on esports at Sportsdunia. Currently, he covers world and general news at NewsX Digital.
