Japan Airlines to raise fuel charge in April to $126 per flight
Japan Airlines plans to increase its fuel surcharge by 12 percent on international flights beginning April 1.
On the carrier's Hawaii routes, the surcharge will increase to 14,000 ($129) from the 12,500 ($115) surcharge that has been in place since Jan. 1.
JAL said the surcharge will be recalculated every three months based on the average price in Singapore of jet fuel, which averaged $109.06 per barrel between November 2007 and January 2008. JAL said the surcharge for tickets issued from July through September 2008 will be based on the average price of fuel from February through April 2008.
The airline said the fuel surcharge also will apply to its international subsidiary JALways, including JAL code-share flights operated by other airlines.
"The company will continue conducting a wide range of countermeasures to limit the full impact of the price increase, including fuel hedging, fuel consumption reductions, and the introduction of more fuel-efficient small- and medium-sized aircraft to its fleet," JAL said.
JAL originally introduced a fuel surcharge on international tickets in February 2005 in response to unprecedented increases in fuel costs. In calendar 2007, the average price of Singapore kerosene fuel increased by nearly $40 a barrel.