Irish carrier will likely be the last to increase prices as air travellers face higher ticket prices and fewer flight options as the ongoing conflict between the US, Israel and Iran pushes oil prices upward and disrupts aviation operations..
Of European airlines, Ryanair holds the best hedging position with 80pc at ¢67 per barrel hedged until March 2027. IAG which owns Aer Lingus, 62pc hdeged for 2026, does not plan to increase prices immediately. Lufthansa hedges 77pc and Air France 62pc
Jet fuel costs have risen sharply due to attacks on refineries and the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, which prevents oil transport through this key route. Airlines pass these increased expenses on to passengers through higher fares and additional surcharges.
The latest insight is that ticket prices could stay elevated for months, even if the situation in the region improves. Demand has grown for flight routes that avoid the Middle East and Gulf stopovers, which forces carriers to adjust pricing upward to meet capacity constraints. Flyers now pay more for journeys that reroute around affected airspace. JOunrey times have laenghtneed between one and two and a half hours.
Several airlines have confirmed fare increases in recent days. Cathay Pacific revealed that fuel costs this month doubled compared with the average of the previous two months. The carrier updated its fuel surcharges, with changes applying to all routes from 18 March. AirAsia confirmed a temporary rise in ticket prices and fuel surcharges, with a promise to review fares when market conditions shift. Thai Airways officials indicated that airfares would rise by 10% to 15%. Qantas applied different price increases depending on the route. SAS introduced a temporary price adjustment, while Air New Zealand raised one-way economy fares by NZ$10 (€5.10) on domestic services, NZ$20 (€10.20) on short-haul routes and NZ$90 (€45.90) on long-haul flights.
Airlines with fuel hedging arrangements benefit from some protection against price spikes. Lufthansa and Ryanair secure portions of their fuel supply at fixed rates through such contracts. Carriers without strong hedging positions face greater pressure to raise fares immediately.
Flight schedules have also contracted markedly. Thousands of services face cancellation or suspension. Air New Zealand reduces its operations by 5% and cancels around 1100 flights between 16 March and 3 May, a move expected to affect about 44000 passengers. Finnair scraps flights to Doha and Dubai until 29 March and avoids airspace over Iraq, Iran, Syria and Israel. ITA Airways suspends services to Tel Aviv until 2 April and extends Dubai cancellations until 28 March. KLM halts Dubai flights until 28 March and cancels Tel Aviv services for the rest of the winter season.
Lufthansa Group, which includes Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Swiss and Brussels Airlines, cancels flights to Tel Aviv through 2 April and to Dubai through 28 March. Wizz Air stops services to Israel until 29 March and suspends routes to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Amman and Jeddah from mainland Europe until mid-September. Non-European airlines such as Delta, Cathay Pacific and Air Canada implement schedule changes as well.
These disruptions concentrate passenger demand on unaffected routes, which pushes fares higher. Cathay Pacific offers business class return trips from Sydney to London in April at A$39577 (€24142), a figure that reflects the current pressure on premium cabin availability.The combination of soaring jet fuel expenses, airspace closures and reduced capacity creates challenges for travellers planning international journeys.
