A major airline has cancelled 20,000 flights from its schedule this summer with an aim to save on the rising cost of jet fuel. The fuel cost have skyrocketed soon after the US-Israel war with Iran broke out in February. The price has jumped from roughly $85–$90 per barrel to as high as $120.
Lufthansa said the decision has been made for its short-haul flights, blaming the cost of jet fuel, which it said had more than doubled, as well as labour disputes with its workforce. According to the reports, most of the cuts come from closing its loss-making CityLine fleet and retiring its 27 aircraft.
On Tuesday, the German carrier said in a statement that it the 20,000 culled flights would save 40,000 tonnes of jet fuel over the period until October – adding that the cuts only represented 1% of its “available seat kilometres”.
The company said it was streamlining its European operations by cutting unprofitable routes from its Frankfurt and Munich hubs, while strengthening services from Zurich, Brussels and Vienna.
Despite these changes, the airline stressed that travellers would still be able to reach its full global network and long‑haul destinations.
Lufthansa’s long‑haul capacity will dip slightly after the summer as the airline retires six intercontinental aircraft. Two of its well‑known Boeing 747s will be taken out of service for the winter ahead of their planned retirement in 2027, while four Airbus A340‑600s are set to leave the fleet permanently in October.
Many airlines have had to pull back because fuel has suddenly become much more expensive and harder to obtain. To cope with these rising costs, carriers have cut back on certain routes, grounded parts of their fleets, and added extra charges to tickets in an effort to absorb the financial strain.
Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency, said that the flight cancellations will begin “soon” if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed amid the Iran war, potentially plunging summer holidays into chaos.
Read about the number of airlines that have cancelled or added extra charges amid jet fuel crisis here.
