Airlines have been facing their “biggest test” since the pandemic amid the Iran war, said The New York Times. Tens of thousands of flights to and from the Middle East have been canceled since the start of the conflict, and tourism in the region has “effectively ground to a halt,” with costs “adding up.”
‘Safer but congested airspace’
Airlines have been “scrambling to find alternatives” to routes through Iranian airspace, said The New York Times. And Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also taken a toll. The “Siberian corridor,” once a “relatively direct connection” between Europe and Asia, has become a “patchwork of workarounds.” Likewise, the airspace over the Gulf has been “largely devoid of commercial planes.” On a standard day, each air traffic controller could be responsible for about six aircraft at a time, but in wartime, that can easily double as they are “shepherding passenger jets through safer but congested airspace,” said the BBC.
The Iran conflict is “further fragmenting a once efficient and finely tuned global aviation network,” said the Times. For Emirates and other Gulf airlines that have the “highest profit margins in the industry,” continued disruption could mean increasing “substantial” economic losses.
As “established east-west routes are narrowing, the skies over Central Asia matter more,” said The Times of Central Asia. Countries like Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan cannot match the “far larger networks” and “deeper fleets” of Gulf hubs, but they can provide “overflight planning, air traffic management and route resilience.” Their aviation systems “clearly now carry far greater strategic and economic importance.”
Putting off passengers
Airlines’ growth plans have been thrown into “disarray,” said Bloomberg. Diversions add many hours to flights, so planes must carry more fuel, an “expensive burden in light of the spike in energy costs.” With the Strait of Hormuz “effectively shut,” markets have been “driving up prices of crude and products like diesel and jet fuel.”
Across the globe, airlines are “raising prices and adding fuel surcharges,” said The New York Times. Air France and KLM have “introduced a $58 increase on ticket prices for long-haul flights.” Air India, IndiGo, Akasa Air and Cathay Pacific have “announced increased surcharges.” And Korean Air Cargo will apply an “urgent adjustment” to its fuel surcharge policy beginning April 1.
Higher inflation could also reduce demand to fly, even “spurring passengers to rethink long-haul trips,” said Bloomberg. And safety concerns are “likely to remain front of mind for many travelers.” |
