Holidaymakers warned they face soaring air fares and cancellations this summer as ministers draw up emergency plans for jet fuel shortages amid Iran war oil supply crisis

Holidaymakers have been warned they will face rising flight costs and cancellations this summer as ministers draw up plans to address jet fuel shortages.

Airline bosses said rising fuel prices caused by the Iran war could also be reflected in families trying to escape this summer if the conflict continues.

And ministers were preparing for a ‘restriction’ on jet fuel supplies, potentially threatening escapees.

‘Contingency’ plans were being drawn up in Whitehall to deal with possible shortages.

A government source told the Mail: ‘Supply may be tight, but it’s not yet clear how significant that is. ‘We are working on contingencies if needed.’

The price of jet fuel in Europe rose to a record high this week; prices were almost double what they were before the conflict began.

It is feared that there will be a famine if Iran’s retaliatory blockade of the Strait of Hormuz continues to restrict Western oil supplies.

Airline bosses said they had bought enough jet fuel cheaply in bulk before the conflict broke out to ensure fare increases were not necessary for at least several months.

EasyJet boss Kenton Jarvis said that there was an increase in fuel prices after Russia invaded Ukraine four years ago, but the jump caused by the US-Israeli war in the Middle East went ‘further north’.

Asked if flight prices could be higher this summer, he said: ‘The answer is yes.’

Speaking at an industry summit in Brussels, he added: ‘The longer prices rise, the more you will have to start covering your position with more expensive fuel. Therefore, my expectation is that prices will increase.

‘It’s a low-margin, competitive industry. We earn around £7 per seat. If fuel goes up £10 you’ve got to do something about it.’

Urging holidaymakers to protect themselves from price rises, he added: ‘I think the message would be to try to book as early as possible.’

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary said there could be ‘problems’ towards the end of the summer season if the conflicts continue.

He added: ‘I think it depends on how long it takes. ‘If it continues for another month or two, which is the general expectation, then we don’t expect any disruption.’

He added: ‘But none of us know. If the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, it is inevitable that oil prices will remain high and this will be reflected in higher tariffs.’

The cost of jet fuel has risen more than crude oil prices, partly due to Europe’s dependence on exports.

SAS, Scandinavia’s largest airline, this week became the first major airline to cancel flights in Europe due to rising fuel prices triggered by the Iran war.

It announced on Tuesday that it would reduce flights due to a “sharp and sudden increase” in jet fuel costs.

Air France-KLM and SAS have already said they will have to increase ticket prices due to rising jet fuel costs, while Finnair has warned that jet fuel supplies could run out due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

There are fears that more airlines in Europe and the UK will be forced to follow suit if the conflict continues.

Speaking at the Brussels summit, former British Airways boss Willie Walsh, now chairman of industry body the International Air Transport Association, said: ‘We’ve seen this before. Fuel prices will increase.

‘Higher fuel prices will lead to higher ticket prices. How high it gets really depends on how long it lasts.’

Whether airlines cancel or increase fares depends on how well they are ‘maintained’. This refers to how much fuel they buy in bulk at a given price. Some airlines had purchased fuel for months before the conflict, when oil prices were as cheap as $67 a barrel. But when those stocks start to run low, airlines are forced to take on higher costs or consider cancellations.

The price of oil has risen above $100 since the conflict began; The Iranian regime threatened to increase this price up to 200 dollars by blockading the Strait of Hormuz.

About one-fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas passes through the Bosphorus, meaning that Iran’s embargo on the Bosphorus is blocking up to 10 million barrels of oil per day.

Oil traders expect to see shortages of jet fuel due to the ongoing blockade in the coming weeks as reserve stocks are depleted and not replenished.

This week Vietnam became the first country to warn of possible flight cancellations from April after China and Thailand said they would halt exports to maintain their own supplies.

Other countries are expected to follow suit in the coming days, and industry experts warn that airlines may be forced to stop serving some long-haul destinations because they may not be able to get fuel for the return trip.

The UK gets the majority of its imported jet fuel from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates; This means it is vulnerable to possible disruptions if the conflict continues.

The UK only has domestic refining capacity to meet a third of current demand, according to the government’s latest supply security report.

A Department for Transport spokesman said: ‘We are in contact with British carriers to support their operations in a combat environment in the Middle East and limit the impact on industry.’