Jet fuel has surged from roughly $85-$90 per barrel to a range of $150-$200 per barrel amid the U.S.-Israeli war involving Iran, blindsiding an aviation sector where fuel can account for as much as a quarter of operating expenditure. The spike has forced airlines across the globe to adjust pricing, capacity and financial forecasts as they try to limit the damage to margins and cash flow. Below is a detailed, alphabetical account of the measures individual carriers have announced or implemented in response to the fuel-price shock.
AEGEAN AIRLINES - The Greek carrier said it anticipates that suspended flights to and from the Middle East together with the jump in fuel costs will have a "notable impact" on its first-quarter results.
AIRASIA X - Executives at the Malaysian long-haul low-cost group reported a 10% reduction in flights across the group and said they implemented a fuel surcharge of about 20% generally.
AIR CANADA - Canada’s largest airline suspended its full-year guidance, citing volatility in jet fuel prices. The company had also announced plans to trim four of its 38 daily New York flights in response to elevated fuel costs.
AIR CHINA, CHINA SOUTHERN AIRLINES, CHINA EASTERN AIRLINES - China’s three largest airlines raised their domestic fuel surcharges to 60 yuan for flights under 800 km and 120 yuan for flights over 800 km, up from prior levels of 10 yuan and 20 yuan respectively.
AIR FRANCE-KLM - The group warned it expects an increase of $2.4 billion in its fuel bill this year and downgraded its capacity outlook for 2025 to a 2% to 4% rise from a previous 3% to 5% projection. The group previously said it would raise long-haul prices, with cabin fares to increase by 50 euros per round trip, and KLM had announced on April 16 the cancellation of 160 European flights in the coming month due to higher fuel costs.
AIR INDIA - The carrier said it will temporarily reduce flights on several international routes between June and August. Bloomberg previously reported management had discussed furloughing non-technical staff and cutting capacity by more than 20% for the following three months. Air India also said it will change its fuel surcharge structure domestically from a flat fee to a distance-based grid, noting that international surcharges did not make up for the exponential fuel-price rise.
AIR NEW ZEALAND - The carrier announced it would reduce flights through May and June and implement fare increases. It was among the earliest to announce broad ticket-price increases after the conflict began and suspended its full-year earnings forecast because of fuel market volatility.
AIR TRANSAT - The Canadian leisure carrier said planned capacity would be cut by 6% from May through October, with reductions expected on routes to Europe and the Caribbean. Its service to Cuba will remain suspended until October.
AKASA AIR - India’s Akasa Air introduced a fuel surcharge that ranges from 199 to 1,300 Indian rupees (about $2 to $14) applicable to both domestic and international flights.
ALASKA AIR - The U.S. airline launched a $500 million debt offering as the surge in fuel prices squeezed margins. Alaska Air had withdrawn its full-year profit forecast earlier and warned of a steep second-quarter earnings hit, while also trimming capacity in some markets.
AMERICAN AIRLINES - The carrier cut its 2026 profit forecast, lowering the expectation to the point that the lower end now implies a loss. American said it expects its jet fuel bill to increase by more than $4 billion this year. The airline has also raised checked-baggage fees by $10 for both the first and second bags and by $150 for a third bag on domestic and short-haul international flights, and it has reduced some economy-class benefits.
ANA - The Japanese airline estimates higher fuel prices will add about 140 billion yen (around $890 million) to costs this year, although hedges, fare increases and cost reductions should limit the net impact to about 60 billion yen. ANA said it is considering introducing a domestic fuel surcharge in the financial year starting April 2027.
ASIANA AIRLINES - The South Korean carrier will remove 22 flights between April and July due to the higher fuel bill, according to Newsis.
CATHAY PACIFIC - The Hong Kong group said it would lower fuel surcharges for most passenger flights from May 16 as part of an "agile response" to volatile jet fuel pricing.
CEBU AIR - The Philippines-based carrier said the sharp fuel-price rise was a central concern and that it will continue to review its pricing and network strategies to help mitigate the impact.
DELTA AIR LINES - Delta said it would reduce capacity by roughly 3.5 percentage points from previously planned levels and raise checked-bag fees in an effort to offset soaring jet fuel costs. The fee increases include a $10 rise for the first and second checked bags and a $50 increase for the third. The airline pulled growth planned for the current quarter and is forecasting profits below Wall Street expectations.
EASYJET - EasyJet warned of a larger half-year pre-tax loss, projecting a loss between 540 million and 560 million pounds ($729 million to $756 million), which incorporates about 25 million pounds of extra fuel costs in March.
FRONTIER AIRLINES - A coalition of U.S. budget carriers that includes Frontier sent a $2.5 billion relief proposal to the U.S. government, according to a Wall Street Journal report. That figure represents the incremental fuel bill the group expects to pay this year compared with prior forecasts. Frontier said it is reviewing its full-year guidance after fuel prices rose significantly since that forecast was issued.
GREATER BAY AIRLINES - The Hong Kong-based airline announced it would increase fuel surcharges on most routes from April 1, while keeping surcharges unchanged on routes to mainland China and Japan.
HONG KONG AIRLINES - The carrier said it would raise fuel surcharges by up to 35% starting March 12, with the largest increases on flights between Hong Kong and destinations such as the Maldives, Bangladesh and Nepal; in those cases charges would rise to HK$384 from HK$284.
IAG - The owner of British Airways warned that annual profit would be lower than earlier forecasts. IAG cited soaring jet fuel costs and supply disruptions as weighing more heavily on earnings than anticipated. The group previously said it would raise ticket prices to reflect higher jet fuel costs and noted that, despite fuel hedging, it was "not immune" to broader effects of fuel-cost volatility.
INDIGO - India’s largest carrier said it would introduce fuel charges on domestic and international services from March 14, including a 900 rupee surcharge for flights to the Middle East and a 2,300 rupee surcharge for flights to Europe.
JETBLUE AIRWAYS - JetBlue said it would slow hiring, cut capacity and raise fares to lessen the effect of surging jet fuel costs, and CEO Joanna Geraghty stated on an earnings call that the airline had suspended its full-year outlook.
KOREAN AIR - The South Korean flag carrier said it will move into emergency management from April as rising oil prices push up costs, according to a source familiar with the matter.
LATAM AIRLINES - The Chile-based group reduced its 2026 core earnings forecast after higher jet fuel prices increased costs.
LUFTHANSA - The German airline group said it expects a 1.7 billion euro hit from jet fuel prices in 2026. Its subsidiary ITA Airways announced plans to increase ticket prices by between 5% and 10% in 2026 to help offset rising fuel bills. In April, the group introduced a new "Economy Basic" low-cost fare for short- and medium-haul travel that will restrict free carry-on allowance to a single laptop bag or small backpack. The group also previously said it would remove 20,000 short-haul flights from its schedule through October, equivalent to about 40,000 metric tons of jet fuel.
PAKISTAN INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES - The carrier said it would raise domestic fares by $20 and international fares by up to $100, citing higher fuel surcharges.
QANTAS AIRWAYS - Qantas delayed a planned A$150 million ($109 million) buyback and lifted its estimated fuel bill for the second half of 2026 to A$3.1 billion-A$3.3 billion, up from a prior A$2.5 billion projection.
SAS - The Scandinavian carrier said it would cancel 1,000 flights in April because of elevated oil and jet fuel prices, after already cancelling a couple hundred flights in March.
SPIRIT AIRLINES - The U.S. low-cost carrier ceased operations abruptly after collapsing under financial pressures that included the sharp increase in fuel costs tied to the Iran war.
SPRING AIRLINES - The Chinese budget airline said it would raise fuel surcharges on domestic flights from April 5, with details to be announced later.
SOUTHWEST AIRLINES - Southwest revised its second-quarter profit estimate to below market expectations and its CEO warned that the jet fuel spike would be a billion-dollar headwind for the airline in the quarter. Earlier the carrier had raised checked-baggage fees by $10 for the first and second bags, bringing the first-bag fee to $45 and the second to $55.
TAP - TAP Portugal said its fare increases would partially offset the revenue impact stemming from fuel-price movements.
THAI AIRASIA - The Thai low-cost carrier said it will reduce overall seat capacity by an average of 30% between May and June to mitigate the combined effects of aviation fuel prices and weakening demand.
THAI AIRWAYS - The national carrier said it would raise fares by 10% to 15% in response to rising fuel costs.
TUI - The European airline and tour operator cut its full-year underlying profit outlook and suspended revenue guidance, saying it incurred about 40 million euros in additional costs in March due to the war, including repatriation efforts and operational disruptions.
TURKISH AIRLINES, LUFTHANSA - SunExpress, the joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, said it would impose a temporary fuel surcharge of 10 euros per passenger on routes between Turkey and mainland Europe for bookings made on or after April 1 for departures on or after May 1. Turkish Airlines said on April 10 it would not distribute any dividend from its 2025 net profit, choosing to retain earnings to preserve cash.
T’WAY AIR - The South Korean low-cost carrier announced plans to furlough some cabin crew without pay in May and June as part of measures to address the impact of the war.
UNITED AIRLINES - United’s CEO Scott Kirby said ticket prices might need to rise by as much as 15% to 20% to compensate for the jump in jet fuel costs. The airline implemented five fare increases late in the first quarter and raised baggage fees, which it said have begun to offset rising fuel costs. United forecast second-quarter and full-year profits below Wall Street estimates and said it expected to recover approximately 40% to 50% of the incremental fuel cost through fares and other revenue measures in the second quarter, improving to 70% to 80% in the third quarter and to as much as 85% to 100% by the fourth quarter.
VIETJET - The Vietnamese budget carrier said it adjusted flight frequency on selected routes because of the potential for fuel shortages.
VIETNAM AIRLINES - Vietnam’s flag carrier plans to cancel 23 domestic flights per week from April, according to the country’s aviation authority, after the airline requested government help to remove an environmental tax on jet fuel.
VIRGIN ATLANTIC - Virgin Atlantic is adding fuel surcharges to fares but its CEO Corneel Koster told the Financial Times the airline will still struggle to return to profitability this year.
VIRGIN AUSTRALIA - The carrier said it expects an increase in jet fuel costs of about A$30 million-A$40 million for the second half of the fiscal year and a 1% capacity reduction in the fourth quarter.
VOLOTEA - The Spanish low-cost operator introduced a policy that links ticket pricing to fuel costs, which could add a post-purchase surcharge of up to 14 euros per passenger per flight.
WESTJET - WestJet has cut seat capacity for June, according to reporting in the Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press previously reported the carrier would add a C$60 fuel surcharge to some bookings and combine flights as costs surge.
WIZZ AIR - The low-cost carrier revised guidance upward, citing robust forward bookings and swift actions to offset soaring fuel bills, including flight cancellations elsewhere and by adding capacity on existing and new routes and using promotional fares. Wizz Air had issued a profit warning at the start of the conflict in the Middle East.
The rapid escalation in oil and jet fuel prices has prompted a wide variety of responses that fall into several broad categories: temporary route suspensions or capacity reductions; surcharge or fare increases; fee increases for ancillary services such as checked baggage; operational measures such as furloughs or emergency management; suspension or revision of financial guidance; and, in some cases, balance-sheet actions such as debt offerings or the deferral of share buybacks.
Fuel surcharges have been applied in various formats - flat fees, distance-based grids, percentage surcharges and per-passenger levies - and carriers are implementing measures with different time horizons. Some actions are temporary and tied to immediate months of higher fuel prices or specific travel windows; others reflect longer-term structural responses such as fare-schedule changes or permanent product adjustments like new low-cost fare classes or baggage restrictions.
Across the industry, airlines emphasised they remain constrained in how quickly they can fully pass through elevated fuel costs into fares. Several carriers signalled only partial cost recovery through fares and ancillary revenues in the short term, with the share of incremental fuel costs recovered increasing through subsequent quarters as fare adjustments and other measures take effect.
Exchange rates used in reporting these figures were provided in the original company releases and financial statements. The following currency conversions were cited: $1 = 6.7908 Chinese yuan renminbi; $1 = 0.8538 euros; $1 = 95.6093 Indian rupees; $1 = 157.7600 yen; $1 = 0.7405 pounds; $1 = 1.3793 Australian dollars; $1 = 1.3690 Canadian dollars.
Industry observers and market participants will be watching how effectively the range of cost and capacity measures temper second-quarter earnings pressure, how quickly carriers can recover the rise in fuel costs through fares and ancillary revenues, and whether any measures lead to significant changes in route networks or travel demand. The immediacy and scale of responses underscore how a rapid fuel-price shock can force simultaneous operational and financial adjustments across a capital-intensive global industry.
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