Surcharges paying the bulk of airline fuel bills

The cost of jet fuel for a transatlantic flight on British Airways can now be paid for almost completely by surcharges that are levied on passengers, according to a recent report.

Beginning in May, BA added fuel surcharges to its ticket prices, with passengers paying from £78-98 additional on long-haul services of less than nine hours’ duration. These charges bring in £19,140 to the carrier on a 224-seat Boeing 777 London-New York flight. The same is true for flights on Virgin Atlantic.

For some time, airlines have complained about the cost of fuel. Manufacturer testing shows that a Boeing 777 carrying 305 passengers typically requires 44 tons of fuel on a London-New York run. The estimate includes cargo and luggage in the calculation. At current oil prices of $800 a ton, the cost to the carrier would be £20,173, which would be nearly covered by fuel surcharges.

Following several weeks of criticism for not reducing fuel surcharges as the price of oil continue to drop BA followed Virgin Atlantic in reducing its levies this past week. It cut long-haul fuel surcharges in economy class by £10 and in premium economy by £5. Even with the cuts, BA still brings in as much as £17,692 in fees on each transatlantic flight.

www.britishairways.com