Soaring Oil Prices Lead to Mass Cancellations of International Flights During China's May Day Holiday
Numerous international flights from China, especially to Southeast Asia and Australia, have been canceled during the May Day holiday due to a sharp increase in aviation fuel costs. Fuel prices have doubled, but ticket prices have not adjusted accordingly, leading airlines to operate at a loss. Tensions in the Middle East are a major factor, with global aviation fuel averaging $209 per barrel.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 15, 2026 at 12:24
- 🔍 Collected: April 15, 2026 at 12:31 (7 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 15, 2026 at 18:39 (6h 8m after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency, Taipei, April 15, reporter Liao Wen-chi) A large number of international flights from China were canceled during the May Day holiday, especially routes to Southeast Asia and Australia. Experts point out that the reason is the sharp increase in aviation fuel costs, but ticket prices have not been adjusted simultaneously, causing airlines to face the operational dilemma of "the more they fly, the more they lose."
According to the surging news report, data from the third-party travel platform "Flight Manager" shows that from the 1st to the 12th, many routes from China to Southeast Asia have canceled all flights, including Xi'an and Chongqing to Phuket; Ordos and Xiamen to Vientiane; Yantai and Hohhot to Bangkok and other routes.
Many flights from China to Oceania have also been canceled, with a cancellation rate of 83.3% for Guangzhou to Darwin flights, 57.1% for Hangzhou to Auckland flights, and 50% for Wuhan to Sydney flights.
The report quoted civil aviation expert Lin Zhijie's analysis, stating that the recent large-scale cancellation of international flights, especially those to and from Southeast Asia and Australia, is primarily due to the significant increase in aviation fuel costs. Current aviation fuel prices have more than doubled compared to before, while international air ticket prices have not significantly increased simultaneously, causing airlines operating these routes to fall into an operational dilemma where "the more flights they operate, the greater the losses."
Lin Zhijie also pointed out that some countries and regions are facing tight fuel supply issues. In some local international airports, not only are fuel surcharges significantly higher, but there are even situations where fuel supply is insufficient and flights cannot be refueled normally. This has directly led to a further increase in the cancellation rate of routes involving these regions.
Recent tensions in the Middle East have led to soaring aviation fuel prices. According to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), as of the week of April 3, 2026, the average global aviation fuel price was $209 per barrel, a significant increase from $99.40 per barrel in the week of February 27, 2026.
Over the past month, to maintain normal flight operations, airlines have been adjusting fuel surcharges to cope with the drastic changes in fuel costs. However, these measures are still insufficient to alleviate the full impact of soaring fuel prices.
The report pointed out that this year's China "May Day" holiday air tickets show a trend of "both volume and price increasing." Data from the Civil Aviation Official Direct Sales Platform of TravelSky shows that on April 30, ticket prices for many popular routes will reach their peak. During the holiday, domestic and outbound flight bookings have increased compared to the same period last year. Flight Manager data shows that as of the 13th, the pre-sale price for domestic economy class tickets during the "May Day" holiday was RMB 979 (approximately NT$4540), a year-on-year increase of 9.6%, and an increase of more than 20% compared to 2019. (Editor: Chen Kai-yu) 1150415
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(Central News Agency, Taipei, April 15, reporter Liao Wen-chi) A large number of international flights from China were canceled during the May Day holiday, especially routes to Southeast Asia and Australia. Experts point out that the reason is the sharp increase in aviation fuel costs, but ticket prices have not been adjusted simultaneously, causing airlines to face the operational dilemma of "the more they fly, the more they lose."
According to the surging news report, data from the third-party travel platform "Flight Manager" shows that from the 1st to the 12th, many routes from China to Southeast Asia have canceled all flights, including Xi'an and Chongqing to Phuket; Ordos and Xiamen to Vientiane; Yantai and Hohhot to Bangkok and other routes.
Many flights from China to Oceania have also been canceled, with a cancellation rate of 83.3% for Guangzhou to Darwin flights, 57.1% for Hangzhou to Auckland flights, and 50% for Wuhan to Sydney flights.
The report quoted civil aviation expert Lin Zhijie's analysis, stating that the recent large-scale cancellation of international flights, especially those to and from Southeast Asia and Australia, is primarily due to the significant increase in aviation fuel costs. Current aviation fuel prices have more than doubled compared to before, while international air ticket prices have not significantly increased simultaneously, causing airlines operating these routes to fall into an operational dilemma where "the more flights they operate, the greater the losses."
Lin Zhijie also pointed out that some countries and regions are facing tight fuel supply issues. In some local international airports, not only are fuel surcharges significantly higher, but there are even situations where fuel supply is insufficient and flights cannot be refueled normally. This has directly led to a further increase in the cancellation rate of routes involving these regions.
Recent tensions in the Middle East have led to soaring aviation fuel prices. According to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), as of the week of April 3, 2026, the average global aviation fuel price was $209 per barrel, a significant increase from $99.40 per barrel in the week of February 27, 2026.
Over the past month, to maintain normal flight operations, airlines have been adjusting fuel surcharges to cope with the drastic changes in fuel costs. However, these measures are still insufficient to alleviate the full impact of soaring fuel prices.
The report pointed out that this year's China "May Day" holiday air tickets show a trend of "both volume and price increasing." Data from the Civil Aviation Official Direct Sales Platform of TravelSky shows that on April 30, ticket prices for many popular routes will reach their peak. During the holiday, domestic and outbound flight bookings have increased compared to the same period last year. Flight Manager data shows that as of the 13th, the pre-sale price for domestic economy class tickets during the "May Day" holiday was RMB 979 (approximately NT$4540), a year-on-year increase of 9.6%, and an increase of more than 20% compared to 2019. (Editor: Chen Kai-yu) 1150415
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency's "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.
Keywords: None