Int'l flight fuel surcharges to hit record high in May

Passengers line up to check in at Incheon International Airport, April 1. Yonhap

Korea’s two largest air carriers will impose record-high fuel surcharges on international flight tickets issued in May, following a sharp rise in global oil prices amid tensions in the Middle East.

Korean Air announced on its website Thursday that its one-way international fuel surcharge on the longest-haul routes will rise to 564,000 won ($383) from 303,000 won for tickets issued this month and 198,000 won for those purchased in March.

This means that fares on a round trip between Incheon and distant North American cities, including New York, Dallas, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, Washington and Toronto, will increase by nearly 1 million won from the prewar level.

Passengers traveling on shorter routes will also face higher fuel surcharges starting next month.

"The fuel surcharge is effective based on the ticketing date, and noticed in advance on a monthly basis," Korean Air said in its notification. "When a ticket was rebooked, fuel surcharge will be adjusted to the prevailing rate at the time."

Asiana Airlines, the country's second-largest full-service carrier now under the control of Korean Air, also announced that its one-way international fuel surcharge on the longest-haul routes will surge to 476,200 won from 251,900 won for tickets issued this month.

These routes include flights from Incheon to major U.S. and European cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Frankfurt, Paris, London, Rome, Barcelona, Prague, Milan and Budapest. Trips to other distant cities such as Sydney, Melbourne and Cairo will also be subject to the highest fuel surcharge.

Jeju Air, Jin Air and Trinity Airways, formerly T’way Air, are expected to announce their new fuel surcharges in the coming days. The budget carriers are expected to follow in the footsteps of the two full-service airlines.

The fuel surcharge hikes come as the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS) for March 16 to April 15 reached the Level 33 bracket.

This marks the first time that the global fuel surcharge benchmark has hit the ceiling. Since the current system was introduced in 2016, it is also the steepest month-on-month increase in fuel surcharges.

When the war between Russia and Ukraine was at its peak in August 2022, the MOPS level was 22.

Airlines are not allowed to raise fuel surcharges on tickets issued in June, even if global oil prices increase further.

With belt-tightening measures already in place, carriers are therefore expected to bear rising fuel costs while also grappling with weakening demand for overseas travel.

Amid growing concerns over widening losses in the aviation industry, Transport Minister Kim Yun-duk will hold a closed-door meeting with heads of Korea’s 12 airlines and the acting chiefs of Incheon International Airport Corp. and Korea Airports Corp.