Could jet fuel shortages scupper your summer holiday plans?
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What warning did the International Energy Agency give regarding jet fuel?
The head of the International Energy Agency has warned that Europe has maybe six weeks or so of jet fuel left, saying flight cancellations could happen soon if oil supplies remain blocked by the Iran war. Clearly, the US war against Iran is going to have an impact on the travel industry. So how much is it going to affect your summer holiday? I'm joined by Cathy Adams, travel news features editor with The Times and The Sunday Times, and by aviation analyst Geoffrey Thomas. Cathy, good morning to you. I might start with you. Pretty sobering warning there from Fatih Birol of the International Energy Agency.
Yes, indeed. And, you know, it is very scary for, I think, everybody looking forward to, you know, a much needed summer holiday. I mean, I'll start and say that actually I've already had two flights cancelled this summer. And I know, and when I've asked about why they've been cancelled, you know, the reasons are a myriad. It could be that there's low demand. It could be that, I mean, it could be because of the jet fuel issue. but I have already seen it happen to me.
How will the jet fuel shortage affect your summer holiday plans?
So I know that it is happening. I've spent the past weeks talking to airlines, some of the biggest European airlines, about how they're feeling about it. And actually, the warning, it doesn't sound quite as bad, I think, as what we're hearing today. So EasyJet tell me that they're not seeing any cancellations. Ryanair say that they do have OK visibility on fuel, but that if nothing is sorted, then yes, we should expect cancellations. British Airways says a very similar thing. Obviously, travel is a very volatile industry anyway. Stuff like this happens, you know, possibly not exactly the jet fuel issue, but there are always geopolitical problems. There's always cancellations, you know, air traffic control delays we've seen in the past.
So the travel industry is very used to things like this happening and external shocks, you know, are normal. But it does look like indeed that this is possibly a little bit scarier with, you know, very, very scary wording, isn't it, from Fatih Birol?
It sure is. But I'm kind of I'm interested in the fact that you've had two flights cancelled. I presume given your job, you do quite a bit of travelling. I do.
What insights do airlines have about flight cancellations?
But it'd be a bit unusual at this time of year already to be getting cancellations, wouldn't it?
I'll be honest. It's never happened to me before. I have had flights cancelled, but they've been very much on the day cancellations. I've never had flights cancelled, you know, sort of six weeks before. eight weeks out. It hasn't so far caused me any consternation because I've just been rolled onto either a later flight or an earlier flight. And I think what airlines are doing is sort of basically looking at their schedules and thinking, OK, which flights are less full, where the loading, which is the measure of how busy a flight is, where the loading is a little bit lower. Could we possibly just remove that from our schedule and then move planes around, possibly moving fleets putting different airlines or different aircraft on routes, et cetera.
But yeah, it hasn't, I mean, it's all been handled very well as well. I have to say, you know, these are both with British Airways, these particular flights. And I have, as I just said, just been rolled onto the next service, an earlier service. So, so far, there hasn't been a huge impact on me, I would say. But it is unusual.
Which regions in Europe might face more jet fuel shortages?
It is unusual.
Yeah. And are there particular regions or areas that you might be watching out for from Europe that might be more prone to problems as the summer rolls on?
Well, I spoke to an analyst earlier this week, actually. And so, first of all, Europe is not as badly affected as, say, Asia. So Asia gets a lot of its jet fuel from the Middle East. And those are the areas, you know, actually in Asia. I've been in Korea, actually, for the past few days with Virgin Atlantic. And in Korea, they're telling civil servants that they actually can't drive to work on specific days to conserve fuel. So things actually on the ground are kind of much worse in Asia.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What warning did the International Energy Agency give regarding jet fuel?
0:00–0:58
2
How will the jet fuel shortage affect your summer holiday plans?
0:58–2:01
3
What insights do airlines have about flight cancellations?
2:01–3:00
4
Which regions in Europe might face more jet fuel shortages?
3:00–4:13
5
What is the impact of the jet fuel situation on low-cost airlines?
4:13–5:35
6
Are fuel surcharges likely to affect passengers this summer?
5:35–7:07
7
What should travelers do about booking flights during this crisis?
7:07–8:03
8
Is the aviation industry moving towards sustainable fuel alternatives?
8:03–11:59
Speakers
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