UAE passengers are paying the price for surging air travel costs linked to the Iran war, with some one-way flight fares to India doubling to more than Dh3,000.
Commercial planes heading into and out of the UAE and across the Gulf region have faced significant disruption since the conflict erupted at the end of February.
Experts warn global air fares are expected to keep rising as the Iran war continues to restrict airspace and available flights to and from the Middle East.
The National has spoken to would-be travellers and industry experts about the situation, with the cost of flights to many destinations having climbed significantly.
Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StrategicAero Research, said airlines were increasing fares to “offset higher fuel bills and lost revenue from limited network scheduled flights”. He added: “It has been a while since fuel prices impacted air fares but this time it is unprecedented.”
Eyad Ayman, an Egyptian stock trader who lives in Abu Dhabi, had booked flights before the start of the conflict to return to Cairo for the Eid holiday. His original flight was cancelled just a couple days before it was scheduled, leaving him to find new tickets, with routes limited.
“I couldn't sleep because my plans were on hold,” he said. “A lot of money is on hold. Two flights got cancelled.”
Despite a return flight typically priced at Dh2,000 to Dh2,500 ($545 to $680) with Emirates, Mr Ayman ended up paying about Dh2,500 one way. From five flights a day, the airline is currently running only two to Cairo daily.
“This was the cheapest flight, there are much more expensive ones”, he said. “The range could be from Dh4,000 to Dh12,000 in economy class.”
Typical prices
The Google Flights price tracker feature shows the average price for similar routes in the past 12 months.
For direct flights from Abu Dhabi to New Delhi, prices in the coming days are Dh2,600 to Dh3,300, which cost Dh1,400 a month ago. Typical prices for this route are between Dh1,050 and Dh1,900, yet one reporter for The National has paid Dh2,500 for a one-way flight from New Delhi to Dubai.
Because of the conflict, airlines have been forced to cancel thousands of flights, with airspace closed across many parts of the Middle East.
IndiGo, India's biggest low-cost airline, told The National its new fuel charge, which has been added to the cost of every flight ticket, is directly due to rising fuel prices.
“This measure is taken due to the significant surge in fuel prices following the ongoing geopolitical issues in the Middle East,” a statement read.
IndiGo added that the International Air Transport Association's jet fuel monitor “indicates an 85 per cent-plus increase in fuel prices for the region”, since the start of the war.
Air India announced a similar surcharge from Wednesday, due to the increase in jet fuel prices, which now make up about 40 per cent of its operating costs.
While air fare increases have a negative impacts on passengers, Mark Martin, aviation consultant at Martin Consulting, said “the prices are justified”.
“War risk insurance has to be added on this and a lot of it has got to do with operational risk,” he said. “Most airlines are flying out of a war zone and the routing is longer.”
The disruption to typical flight paths can be seen on tracking websites such as FlightRadar24, which can potentially add hours to flight duration.
Journeys taking longer
Catalin Botezat, an NYU Abu Dhabi student, had planned a trip to China for the spring break. When his flight was cancelled on the scheduled day of travel, he decided to make alternative arrangements to leave the country. He booked flights to Paris, Riyadh and Jeddah and faced a string of cancellations.
“Looking on Flightradar24, I was trying to find some pattern, what's more likely to go out than other flights,” he said. He was ultimately able to fly back to his home country of Moldova through Jeddah and Istanbul with Turkish Airlines, which cost him €1,120 ($1,290). Typically, he says, he can find flights for €150 to €200 ($231) to travel home from the UAE.
He said. “I understand there is supply and demand, and it [the price] will be higher. I think for the UAE airlines prices were OK, however, Turkish Airlines overpriced it by far.”
Michael Mckenzie, who comes from New York but has lived in Abu Dhabi for almost 11 years and works for a sovereign wealth fund, also faced higher prices than usual and was grateful for his emergency credit card.
“Typically during Christmas and New Year, I'll pay $2,500 to $2,800 for a round-trip flight to go from New York to Abu Dhabi, or vice versa. I paid $2,300 for a one-way flight,” he told The National.
Mr Mckenzie, who flew back to his home city on Saturday, ended up accidentally booking six flights with airlines due to website glitches, and all but one ended up being cancelled. He hopes for better communication from airlines, although he said his flight experience from Zayed International Airport to New York was “amazing”.
“I hope they would stop the price gouging, because the flight was empty, almost everyone had a row to themselves”, he said. “The information was confusing, the US said they couldn't evacuate people because the airspace is closed but on FlightRadar24 all these flights were taking off.”
Mr Ayman, Mr Botezat and Mr Mckenzie are still waiting for airlines to refund them for the cancelled flights, which they fear may take a long time and leave their thousands of dirhams at the mercy of the airlines' policies and timetables.
'Tip of the iceberg'
Meanwhile, international airlines are stepping in to respond to the demand and take advantage of the limited flight options, Mr Ahmad said.
Uncertainty over how long the conflict will last and oil price volatility are major factors in increasing fares. Research from Martin Consulting shows the weekly impact to Indian and international airlines at upwards of $95.3 million.
“This is the tip of the iceberg, I'm afraid,” Mr Martin said. “The rise in fares that we're seeing today is not because of the war in the Gulf but because of Venezuela. And by the time the cost impact from the Gulf conflict comes in, we're looking at jet fuel practically doubling.”
With the busy summer season approaching, experts warn a prolonged conflict could have catastrophic consequences to the aviation industry.
“If that happens, it is likely the fallout will be a lot harder and financial implications for airlines, airports and connected services will run into billions of dollars,” Mr Ahmad said.
A representative for flydubai said many factors are behind price increases.
“Amid ongoing disruption and airspace closures in the region, several factors are having a temporary impact on airfares, including rising fuel prices, longer flight routes and limited capacity due to reduced schedules,” they said. “Flydubai continuously monitors its fares and, like the wider industry, is not immune to price fluctuation.
“We are taking every step we can to keep fares as low as possible, while offering our customers flexibility to rebook or request refunds for affected flights. The safety of our passengers and crew remains our highest priority, as we work towards restoring our schedules as the situation stabilises.”
Numerous other airlines have been contacted but have yet to comment.
