Qantas has announced a significant increase in its fuel surcharge for international services, its first fuel surcharge increase since January 2008, in response to rising fuel prices.
“Fuel prices are a major issue. Crude oil prices are currently trading at their highest levels since the global financial crisis. The Qantas Group has a big exposure to fuel prices, although exchange rate movements partially offset their impact. But over the past four months, the Australian dollar has appreciated by six per cent, while jet fuel prices rose by around 24 per cent,” Qantas CEO Alan Joyce told the Melbourne Press Club on February 3.
For flights after February 19, the fuel surcharge increases from $95 to $145 one-way for flights to/from the UK and Europe; from $85 to $115 for North and South America, India and South Africa; and from $55 to $75 for routes to Asia, the Pacific and Hawaii.
Joyce says the surcharges “will not fully recover this additional cost, and we cannot rule out further changes in the future.”
Qantas removed surcharges from domestic and trans Tasman flights in January 2009, but says that domestic and trans Tasman fares are “under review”.
As for Jetstar, “Jetstar is committed to offering the lowest fares, and will address the fuel price issue via selective changes to air fares and increases in ancillary revenue, including baggage charges,” Joyce told the Melbourne Press Club. “As a Group we will be monitoring the situation, and we cannot rule out further changes in the future.”
