French minister calls on airlines to ‘respect passenger rights’
Transport minister’s appeal comes as airlines add charges and cancel flights amid jet fuel crisis
Spanish airline Volotea has been applying a €14 surcharge to already-purchased tickets
Strikernia/Shutterstock
The French transport minister has called for “passenger rights to be respected” amid the jet fuel crisis that is prompting airlines to cancel flights and increase fares.
“We are calling for passengers’ rights to be respected,” said Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot to FranceInfo on May 6. “When it comes to cancellations, there must be a refund or the rebooking onto another flight, and information provided as soon as possible.”
He is set to meet airline representatives this afternoon to discuss the jet fuel situation and immediate plans for the sector, amid the Middle East crisis that is causing a surge in fuel prices.
It comes as Spanish airline Volotea has been applying a €14 surcharge to tickets that have already been purchased since mid-March, and recently-released figures from airline analytics firm Cirium showing that “more than 5.4 million seats and more than 18,000 flights” worldwide were removed “for the month of April alone”.
“Airlines are scrambling to respond,” said Cirium in its latest jet fuel update.
Mr Tabarot criticised these actions, and said that “we will clarify [the situation with] these matters very quickly”.
Yet, he also called for understanding for airlines, which are struggling to face the sudden fuel cost increase. “‘I hope we can also really take into account the difficulties faced by these airlines, because they mainly make their money in the summer,” he said. The price of fuel can affect up to 40% of airlines’ costs.
Strait supply
The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, this week told the AP that the airline industry has “maybe six weeks” of kerosene supply left at the current time, due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran in response to US and Israeli attacks.
The Strait of Hormuz is a key supply route for jet fuel from the Middle East, with the IEA warning that the crisis "has thrown a proverbial wrench into the inner workings of the aviation fuel markets".
And while the European Commission has said that there was not yet any "evidence of fuel shortages" in the EU, it has said the situation could become a problem "in the near future". Last week, the Airports Council International wrote to the Commission saying that shortages could occur if the Strait of Hormuz does not reopen within the next three weeks.
Similarly, fewer flights are scheduled to and from France this summer than in previous years, with thousands already cut, and low-cost airline Ryanair warning that it only has jet fuel supplies guaranteed until the end of May.
Yet, Mr Tabarot sought to “reassure people” in France. “As I speak, we have visibility for a few weeks, or even a few months,” he said.
Other transport companies could benefit from the shift away from air travel; Brittany Ferries has pledged that it will not raise ticket prices this summer due to rising fuel prices, as its supplies are already assured for the coming months.
