Middle East War: European Airlines Cancel Flights, Raise Prices
The Middle East war has led to rising jet fuel prices and mass flight cancellations in Europe. Airlines like Lufthansa and KLM are reducing flights. The European Commission is developing measures to diversify supplies and build strategic fuel reserves.
The escalation of the war in the Middle East has caused significant disruption in the aviation industry, leading to flight cancellations and increased ticket prices. European Commissioner for Energy, Dan Jørgensen, noted this would impact many people's summer holiday plans. Aviation is vulnerable to geopolitical conflicts due to its reliance on imported jet fuel, a significant portion of which comes from the Middle East via the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iranian crisis has already led to a sharp rise in airfare prices. The EU imports almost 100% of crude oil for jet fuel production, and about a third of finished fuel comes from the Middle East. Major airlines, such as SAS, announced hundreds of flight cancellations in March due to high fuel prices. On April 10, the Airports Council International warned of a fuel shortage in Europe within three weeks if the Strait of Hormuz is not fully open. Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency, stated that Europe has about six weeks of jet fuel reserves.
Dutch KLM canceled approximately 160 flights within Europe for the next month. German Lufthansa plans to cut around 20,000 short-haul flights until October to save 40,000 tons of fuel. Fuel prices have more than doubled, forcing airlines to raise ticket prices. Latvian airBaltic received a short-term loan of 30 million euros from the government.
On April 22, the European Commission unveiled a comprehensive package of measures, AccelerateEU, to mitigate the crisis's impact, including diversifying supply sources and accelerating the transition to alternative energy. The EU may introduce requirements for member states to build strategic jet fuel reserves and tools for redistributing fuel among nations.