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Air India is said to have reduced the fuel surcharge on long haul flights including to the US. The airline is said to be charging $ 200 instead of $ 280 fuel surcharge that the Indian airline had imposed since April 10 this year.
While Air India refused to comment on this development travel agents say that the lower surcharge has been showing since July 1 this year. The enhanced surcharge was put in place in April this year to offset some of the costs that the airline was incurring for procuring fuel the cost of which shot up drastically ever since the Gulf war started at the end of February this year.
“According to the latest data published by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global average jet fuel price rose to $ 195.19 per barrel for the week ending 27 March this year2026, up from $ 99.40 at the end of February, recording a surge of close to 100 percent. ATF, produced by refining crude oil, has seen simultaneous increases in both its crude oil component as well as the refinery margin, known as ‘crack spread,’ with the latter having nearly tripled within three weeks,” Air India had said as a justification for hiking the surcharge to $280 in April this year.
It further noted “It increased from $ 27.83 per barrel for the week ending 27 February to $81.44 for the week ending 27 March. This steep rise compounds the impact of rising crude oil prices, creating one of the most challenging fuel cost environments that airlines globally have faced in recent years.”
But since the cease fire between the warring countries has come into effect the price of aviation fuel has moderated globally. With the situation in West Asia improving Air India Express said on Thursday that it has restored connectivity to all destinations across its West Asia network with the resumption of services to Salalah in Oman and Kuwait. Flights on the Kozhikode–Salalah route resume from July 2.
Services between Kozhikode and Kuwait will resume from July 3, while flights between Bengaluru and Kuwait will start the following day, with frequencies increasing in phases over the coming days.
“The Kozhikode–Salalah service will operate twice every week. Services between Kozhikode and Kuwait will initially operate once a week from 3 July, increasing to three weekly flights from July 5. With this resumption, Air India Express now operates from two airports in Oman including Muscat International Airport and Salalah International Airport.”
The airline said it has also reinstated flights between Muscat and Mangaluru starting July 3. The airline operates about 40 weekly flights from Muscat to seven destinations in India. Bengaluru–Kuwait services will operate once a week from July 4, increasing to three weekly flights from July 7.
