article_detail

Airlines and aviation experts are sending very mixed signals right now, leaving holidaymakers in Spain unsure whether they should be booking flights quickly or not worrying at all.

 

On one hand, Spain’s airline sector is insisting that there is no immediate danger to flight operations, with strong supply chains and contracts in place to keep aircraft in the air. On the other, European industry warnings are growing louder about jet fuel availability and sharply rising costs, with suggestions that prices could keep climbing and even impact routes if tensions continue.

 

The Spanish Airline Association (ALA) president Javier Gándara explained this week that kerosene prices have “doubled in recent weeks” due to the conflict in Iran, but stressed that the real issue is cost rather than availability. He said supply at Spanish airports is “guaranteed” thanks to hedging contracts and domestic refining capacity, adding that “we do not anticipate any further cancellations”.

 

According to the ALA, only around 1.5% of air traffic would be directly affected by the current situation, with Spain also less exposed to Middle Eastern oil imports than other countries. Gándara pointed out that around 80% of aviation fuel used in Spanish airports is refined locally, which helps cushion shocks.

 

He also repeated advice from the industry for passengers to book early to avoid higher fares, explaining that airlines will either absorb rising costs or pass them on through ticket prices depending on their margins.

 

However, not everyone in the sector is as relaxed. A recent letter sent to the European Union by Ryanair, other budget carriers and ACI Europe, which represents EU airports, warned of “growing concern” over jet fuel availability. The letter called for urgent monitoring and proactive measures, suggesting that if fuel routes through key areas such as the Strait of Hormuz are not stabilised within three weeks, “systemic jet fuel shortages will become a reality for the EU”.

 

Adding to the uncertainty, Romà Andreu, a professor at EAE Business School, warned that some airlines without strong fuel hedging contracts are already cutting flights and facing losses. He also pointed out that “people in the sector are saying there is enough fuel for six weeks”, highlighting how unclear the real situation is.

 

Budget airline Volotea has already introduced a minimum €14 per passenger fuel surcharge on certain bookings, a move that has triggered criticism from consumer groups including OCU and Facua, who argue it may breach the “final price principle” if not clearly displayed upfront.

 

For now, airlines continue to reassure passengers that Spain is in a relatively strong position. But with warnings of rising prices on one side and potential shortages on the other, the message from the aviation sector is far from unified, and travellers are left trying to read between the lines.