Airline tickets cost significantly more than a year ago. But are they really as expensive as many think? A long-term view helps to classify the increase.
Inflation has arrived in aviation. This is mainly due to the massive increase in the price of kerosene. At $143 per barrel, aviation fuel is currently cheaper than it was after the start of the Ukraine war, but it is still twice as much as a year ago. According to data from the World Aviation Association Iata, it was last this expensive in 2008.
In order to be able to at least partially cover the additional costs, airlines increase their ticket prices. Ryanair expects the average fare to rise steadily, from 40 euros today to 50 and 60 euros. Flying has simply “become too cheap for what it is,” said CEO Michael O’Leary.
Prices have sometimes doubled
The surcharges are sometimes significant, as shown by an analysis carried out by the flight search engine Swoodoo for aeroTELEGRAPH. A flight from Frankfurt to Athens in June cost on average 113 percent more than a year ago, a flight from Düsseldorf to Palma 27 percent and a flight from Munich to Tenerife 23 percent more.
Not only European flights became significantly more expensive, but also long-haul flights. A flight from Frankfurt to Bangkok costs ten percent more today than in June 2021 and a flight to Windhoek costs 6 percent more. However, there are also examples of lower prices on long-distance flights, which is rare in Europe.
Also deferred plans as a price-rising element
Prices have also risen in Austria. From Vienna to Athens you currently pay 137 percent more than a year ago. A flight from the Austrian capital to Palma is 37 percent more expensive than in June 2021. A spokeswoman for Swoodoo explains that the price increases have to be put into perspective. 2021 was still a Corona year, in which travel restrictions still applied in many countries, she points out. At that time I had a pent-up desire to travel. “Now that these postponed plans can finally be realized, ticket prices are rising.”
But the current increase belies the general trend of the past ten years. Even if tickets cost more now than in 2021. They are massively cheaper than ten years ago. In 2012, for example, you paid an average of 352 euros for a flight between Frankfurt and Tenerife North, now it is only 283 euros or around 20 percent less. In the case of Frankfurt – Palma, the minus is even 49 percent. On the Vienna – Palma route, tickets have been 78 percent cheaper since 2021, falling from 183 to 41 euros.