Cathay Pacific Airways announced on Thursday (Mar 12) that it will raise fuel surcharges on most routes from Mar 18.

The Hong Kong flagship carrier said in a statement that the price of jet fuel has "approximately doubled" amid the war on Iran, which began on Feb 28.

The adjustment to the fuel surcharge is in line with its established mechanism, Cathay Pacific added.

For short-haul flights, the fuel surcharge will increase to HK$290 (US$37), up from HK$142.

The surcharge for medium-haul flights will rise to HK$541 from HK$264, while that for long-haul flights will more than double from HK$569 to HK$1,164.

"The fuel surcharge is reviewed regularly and closely tracks the price of refined jet fuel," the airline said, as it published a detailed list of affected routes.

Cathay Pacific adjusts its fuel surcharges on a monthly basis, taking fuel prices into account.

On Wednesday, the airline said that it would soon announce a surcharge rise due to the war in the Middle East.

It has sent the price of oil and gas soaring, with Iran's Revolutionary Guards vowing to choke off traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's key energy transit routes.

The average global price of jet fuel has surged even faster, reaching US$173.91 per barrel on Monday, according to the Platts benchmark index.

Other airlines have also announced measures to counter the increase in fuel prices.

Hong Kong Airlines said that it would raise fuel surcharges by up to 35.2 percent from Thursday.

Australia's Qantas Airways said that it would hike fares on international routes for this week, and Air New Zealand said that it would implement broad increases to ticket prices. 

Thai Airways said that it would raise fares by 10 percent to 15 percent, while Vietnam Airlines said that it had requested government assistance to remove an environmental tax on jet fuel.

Some European airlines, however, will be able to withstand the shock in the short term, as many purchased fuel at fixed prices for several months in advance.

Germany's Lufthansa said that it had bought 80 percent of its annual fuel needs at a fixed price.

Air France-KLM said that it had secured a fixed price for 70 percent of its fuel for the first two quarters of the year and 60 percent for the following quarter.

A similar strategy also protects Ireland's budget airline Ryanair, according to a report by Bernstein analysts.

But SAS, the largest Scandinavian airline, on Tuesday announced a "temporary" increase in its fares owing to the spike in fuel costs.

Source: CNA