Qantas will be hiking up cost of fares on Australian domestic, regional and Tasman routes due to high oil and jet fuel prices.
Domestic and regional tickets will go up by $10 per sector for all tickets issued after March 31 and an eight per cent increase on fares across the Tasman.
Qantas chief, Alan Joyce, said the current (global) situation presented a significant threat to airlines in Australia and around the world.
“The increasing price of fuel is a major concern for the Qantas Group and the global aviation industry,” he said.
“Airlines have a range of options available to them to manage this significant cost, and Qantas is among the best in terms of using mechanisms such as hedging and fuel conservation.
“However the situation today is very different to the last fuel crisis, when the global economy was strong. This time, the world is still emerging from the Global Economic Crisis, and demand is still recovering.
“Since international fuel surcharges and domestic fares increased last month, jet fuel prices have increased by a further 15 per cent, to more than USD134 per barrel today.
“Even with favourable hedging in place, it is still at a much higher price than we can absorb,” he added.
Details: www.qantas.com

by Shamoli Dutt - Austguide Travel News Editor