Overview
- In a Fox News interview, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called the rise in jet-fuel prices a small, short-term jump and said fuel could fall below pre-conflict levels over time.
- Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the carrier’s fuel expense has doubled in recent weeks and signaled the airline will try to pass some of the added cost to customers.
- Aviation analysts disputed Duffy’s logic that today’s higher fuel costs would lead to cheaper tickets later, noting airlines price to demand and would first rebuild margins if fuel drops.
- Carriers are absorbing part of the increase, lifting fees such as checked bags, and cutting capacity, with Air Canada suspending New York JFK flights for at least five months, according to Crooks and Liars.
- The surge follows renewed disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil shipping lane, which has unsettled fuel supply and pushed up jet-fuel prices.