Britons have been warned to expect more flight cancellations along key routes as jet prices continue to soar due to events in the Middle East.
Services connecting Cornwall and Guernsey to the capital are being scrapped or scaled back as smaller operators find themselves unable to absorb the dramatic surge in expenses.
According to the International Air Transport Association, jet fuel prices have climbed more than 130 per cent compared with the same period twelve months ago.
The crisis has forced airlines providing what industry figures describe as “lifeline” connections to make difficult choices about which routes can survive, leaving remote areas facing potential isolation from major economic hubs.
Skybus axed its Newquay to Gatwick service just ahead of the bank holiday weekend.
Jonathan Hinkles, the airline’s managing director, pointed to a “huge rise in the cost of fuel following the war in the Gulf” combined with a “significant drop” in passenger bookings.
Channel Islands operator Aurigny has announced it will scale back frequencies on its Guernsey to London City route while merging its Exeter and Bristol services. Flights to Paris will similarly be reduced.
Nico Bezuidenhout, Aurigny’s chief executive, attributed the cuts to kerosene prices doubling since US and Israeli forces struck Iran on February 28, alongside an unexpected decline in bookings.
Britons have been warned to expect further flight cancellations
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“I’ve been through a couple of fuel crises and you can do one of two things: transfer that cost burden to the consumer, or reduce costs by consolidating flights, as we’ve chosen to do,” he said.
The Guernsey-based carrier has hedged between 20 and 50 per cent of its near-term fuel requirements, leaving it significantly more exposed than British Airways, which has secured 70 per cent of its needs.
Aurigny introduced a £2 surcharge on tickets, but Mr Bezuidenhout acknowledged that far steeper increases would have been required to maintain all services. The island’s market simply could not bear such rises.
Toby Parkins, president of the Cornish Chamber of Commerce, expressed concern about Newquay airport’s financial outlook.
Jet prices have soared since the start of the Iran war
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He told the BBC that Skybus paid landing fees of £2,000 compared with just £600 from larger budget carriers, meaning “the income into the airport is going to be considerably down.”
Higher air passenger duty introduced at the start of April, together with increased EU passenger compensation requirements, will compound the difficulties for regional operators attempting to weather fuel-related costs, Mr Bezuidenhout warned.
Short-haul domestic routes face particular challenges because flights lasting an hour or less carry substantial fixed costs without the benefit of profitable long-haul services to offset losses, unlike larger network carriers.
Despite the turbulent market conditions, British Airways confirmed it will proceed with launching Heathrow to Guernsey flights on April 19, with fares set at approximately £70 each way.
Mr Bezuidenhout noted that while fuel shortages affecting parts of Asia following the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have not yet reached Britain, he would not rule out such disruptions materialising.
“It’s becoming progressively tougher to do business for anybody active in the short-haul, domestic market in the UK,” he said.
“Yet regional carriers provide literally lifeline connectivity to communities that would otherwise be cut off from main economic centres.”