International Oil Prices Soar: Korean Airlines to Double Fuel Surcharges from May
Due to surging international oil prices from the Middle East conflict, major Korean airlines will double fuel surcharges from May. This will lead to reduced operations on low-profit routes and flight cancellations.
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- 📰 Published: May 1, 2026 at 13:36
- 🔍 Collected: May 1, 2026 at 14:01 (25 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 1, 2026 at 21:01 (6h 59m after Collected)
(Central News Agency reporter Yang Chi-chen, Seoul, May 1st exclusive report) Due to soaring international oil prices affected by the Middle East conflict, major Korean airlines will start charging approximately double the fuel surcharge from May onwards for tickets issued from today. Korean Air will increase by about 1.8 times; various airlines are also reducing operations on low-profit routes.
According to Yonhap News Agency's report today, Korean airline tickets will apply the highest level of fuel surcharge, Level 33 (over 470 cents per gallon), starting this month. This is the first time Level 33 has been applied since the current fuel surcharge system was implemented in 2016, a jump of 15 levels from Level 18 last month.
From this month, Korean Air's fuel surcharge for a one-way ticket ranges from 75,000 Korean Won (approximately NT$1,660) to 564,000 Korean Won (approximately NT$12,530), an increase of about 1.8 to 1.9 times. Asiana Airlines' international fuel surcharge for a one-way ticket this month ranges from 85,400 Korean Won (approximately NT$1,900) to 476,200 Korean Won (approximately NT$10,580), which is about double last month's rate.
However, the report points out that although fuel surcharges increase the burden on consumers, they are still insufficient to fully offset the airlines' fuel cost pressure. An analysis by a low-cost airline shows that fuel costs increased by 120% compared to the previous month and 130% compared to last year, but fuel surcharges can only cover about half of the increase.
Therefore, major airlines are reducing the scale of operations on low-profit routes. Asiana Airlines originally planned to reduce 3 international routes, a total of 8 flights, this month, but has recently expanded to 13 flights. Jin Air canceled 45 round-trip flights on 8 routes last month, and this month it will expand to 14 routes, with a total of 131 flights suspended. (Editor: Chen Kung-wei) 1150501
According to Yonhap News Agency's report today, Korean airline tickets will apply the highest level of fuel surcharge, Level 33 (over 470 cents per gallon), starting this month. This is the first time Level 33 has been applied since the current fuel surcharge system was implemented in 2016, a jump of 15 levels from Level 18 last month.
From this month, Korean Air's fuel surcharge for a one-way ticket ranges from 75,000 Korean Won (approximately NT$1,660) to 564,000 Korean Won (approximately NT$12,530), an increase of about 1.8 to 1.9 times. Asiana Airlines' international fuel surcharge for a one-way ticket this month ranges from 85,400 Korean Won (approximately NT$1,900) to 476,200 Korean Won (approximately NT$10,580), which is about double last month's rate.
However, the report points out that although fuel surcharges increase the burden on consumers, they are still insufficient to fully offset the airlines' fuel cost pressure. An analysis by a low-cost airline shows that fuel costs increased by 120% compared to the previous month and 130% compared to last year, but fuel surcharges can only cover about half of the increase.
Therefore, major airlines are reducing the scale of operations on low-profit routes. Asiana Airlines originally planned to reduce 3 international routes, a total of 8 flights, this month, but has recently expanded to 13 flights. Jin Air canceled 45 round-trip flights on 8 routes last month, and this month it will expand to 14 routes, with a total of 131 flights suspended. (Editor: Chen Kung-wei) 1150501