Airlines cut two million seats from May schedules amid jet fuel crisis
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Airlines have removed around two million seats from their May schedules within the past two weeks, as mounting fears grow that the Iran conflict could drive jet fuel supplies down to critically low levels. Iran resumed hostilities last night, launching missiles at US ships and oil storage sites in the United Arab Emirates – causing another spike in the price of crude. However, airlines have already begun taking action in anticipation that the conflict will continue. The total number of seats available across all carriers in May fell from 132,619,704 in mid-April to 130,674,864 in late April, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium. Total flights fell by more than 13,000 over the same period, from 859,167 to 846,162. Gulf airlines such as Qatar, Etihad, and Emirates have been worst hit by Middle East airspace closures and airport disruption since February 28, as well as rising fuel costs. European operators Lufthansa, Air France-KLM, and SAS have also cut schedules in recent weeks, while US airline Spirit has gone out of business following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 per cent of global crude supply passes. Lufthansa had the most seat cancellations after cutting 20,000 flights between May and October, with Air China second after axing internal services, reported the FT. Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has warned rivals that Europe’s biggest airline are now ‘desperately’ searching for flights to cancel and are expected to do so within weeks.The post Airlines cut two million seats from May schedules amid jet fuel crisis appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.
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