How may the jet gas disaster have an effect on YOUR vacation? All your questions answered as Labour unveils new plans for summer season journey

On May 4, 2026

Britain’s holidaymakers face a summer of flight cancellations after the Government brought in a temporary rule change allowing airlines to group together passengers from different flights on to fewer planes as part of plans to save jet fuel.

Passengers could be moved from their original service to a similar one, to cut the fuel wasted by flying planes that have not sold out and might have been axed.

The proposal comes amid warnings of a jet fuel shortage ahead of the peak holiday season if the Strait of Hormuz does not reopen while the Iran war continues.

Planes on the ground at London Heathrow Airport’s Terminal Five yesterday

How is the Iran war impacting flights?

The US-Israeli war on Iran since February has disrupted the supply of jet fuel via the Strait of Hormuz, through which around a fifth of the world’s oil travels.

Iran’s effective closure of the critical international shipping route has caused major cost pressures for some airlines, which have been increasing ticket prices and cancelling flights since the conflict began on February 28.

How much has jet fuel gone up in price?

The average global jet fuel price increased from $99 (£73) per barrel at the end of February to as high as $209 (£155) at the start of April, according to International Air Transport Association data.

The latest figure is $179 (£132) from the week ending April 24, which was a 3 per cent fall on the previous week.

Is there a shortage of jet fuel now?

The Government has insisted that UK airlines are ‘clear that they are not currently seeing a shortage of jet fuel’.

The Department for Transport points out that jet fuel is ‘typically bought in advance, with airports and their suppliers keeping stocks of bunkered fuel to support their resilience’.

But it adds that it continues to ‘plan for a range of contingencies, while focusing on securing a long lasting and workable solution to get shipping flowing freely again through the Strait of Hormuz’.

Will there be a shortage in future?

Some experts fear jet fuel shortages within weeks and some consumers are holding off booking holidays or flights in case they are cancelled over the coming months.

The International Energy Agency has called it the world’s largest oil output disruption and warned on April 16 that Europe had six weeks of jet fuel left before shortages begin.

What is the UK Government doing?

The Government has introduced a temporary rule change allowing airlines to group together passengers from different flights on to fewer planes as part of plans to save fuel.

Passengers could be moved from the service they originally booked to a similar one, to reduce the amount of fuel wasted by flying planes that have not sold out and might have been cancelled.

This means holidaymakers are facing potential flight cancellations – but the move comes amid warnings of a jet fuel shortage ahead of the peak holiday season.

What are your rights?

The Government has reminded air passengers of their rights, including when facing long delays or cancellations, in a bid to protect summer holidays from disruption.

How European airlines are responding to the jet fuel crisis

AEGEAN AIRLINES: The Greek airline expects suspended Middle East flights and a spike in fuel prices to have a ‘notable impact’ on its first-quarter results.

AIR FRANCE-KLM: The airline group said it planned to increase long-haul ticket prices to address surging fuel costs, with cabin fares set to rise by €50 (£43) per round trip. Dutch arm KLM said on April 16 it would cancel 160 flights in Europe in the coming month due to rising fuel costs.

EASYJET: EasyJet warned of a bigger half-year pre-tax loss of between £540million to £560million, including £25million in extra fuel costs in March.

IAG: British Airways-owner IAG said it would raise ticket prices to reflect higher jet fuel costs, as, despite its fuel hedges, it was ‘not immune’ to the broader fallout from fuel cost volatility.

LUFTHANSA: The German airline group unveiled a new ‘Economy Basic’ low-cost fare option for short- and medium-haul flights, which will limit free carry-on bags to only a ‘laptop bag or a small backpack’. The group previously said 20,000 short-haul flights would be removed from its schedule through October, equivalent to about 40,000 metric tons of jet fuel.

RYANAIR: Ryanair boss CEO Michael O’Leary said the risk of a jet fuel supply shortage in Europe is receding, but it had lowered some fares for flights between June and September to stimulate demand which had been ‘a little bit weaker’ than for April and May.

SAS: The Scandinavian airline said it would cancel 1,000 flights in April because of high jet fuel prices, after canceling a few hundred in March.

TAP: The Portuguese airline said price hikes would partially mitigate impacts of fuel price changes on its revenue.

TUI: The European airline and tour operator cut its full-year underlying profit outlook and suspended revenue guidance, saying it had incurred about €40million (£35million) in extra costs due to the war in March, including repatriation efforts and operational disruptions.

TURKISH AIRLINES, LUFTHANSA: SunExpress, a joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, said it would impose a temporary fuel surcharge of €10 (£9) per passenger from May 1 on routes between Turkey and mainland Europe. The surcharge will apply to bookings made on or after April 1 for departures on or after May 1.

VIRGIN ATLANTIC: The airline is adding fuel surcharges to fares but will still struggle to return to profitability this year, its CEO Corneel Koster said.

VOLOTEA: The Spanish low-cost airline introduced a new pricing policy linking ticket prices to fuel costs, which could potentially add a post-purchase surcharge of up to €14 (£12) per passenger, per flight.

Passengers experiencing flight cancellations can expect to receive a refund or be re-routed on another service, while those facing long delays have a right to receive care and assistance, the Department for Transport (DfT) said.

In a briefing document, the department said passengers experiencing cancellations are entitled to a choice between a refund or to be rerouted on another service, in which case airlines have to offer a comparable alternative.

Passengers experiencing cancellations and passengers facing delays of at least two hours on a short flight, three hours on a medium-haul and four hours on a long flight, have a right to care and assistance.

The DfT said this can include offering vouchers for a reasonable amount of food and drink, refunds for the cost of calls, accommodation, and transport to and from the accommodation when a flight is cancelled.

What should you do if your flight is cancelled?

Under UK law, if your flight is cancelled, you are entitled to either a full refund or to be booked onto an alternative flight if you:

depart from an airport in the UK on any airline
arrive at an airport in the UK on an EU or UK airline
arrive at an airport in the EU on a UK airline

Should you change your holiday plans?

The Prime Minister warned last week that Britons may need to change their summer holiday plans because of the jet fuel crisis.

Sir Keir Starmer said people might rethink ‘where they go on holiday this year’ if the Iran war continues to impact airlines.

His intervention went further than the Government’s current messaging, which is that there is ‘no current need to change upcoming travel plans’.

How have consumer groups reacted?

The new plan has been criticised by consumer group Which? who said rules should not be ‘bent in favour of airlines’.

Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: ‘Existing rules already allow airlines to move customers to new flights so long as they give them more than 14 days’ notice and offer the choice between a new flight or a refund.

‘It’s only for cancellations within 14 days that compensation is payable, rightly.

‘It’s not fair for the rules to now be bent in favour of airlines and potentially leave passengers holding the bill.

‘Many passengers will understand that disruptions can occur and may be happy to travel a few hours or a day later, but for those on short trips or connecting flights it could mean the trip is no longer worthwhile.

‘Before any changes are made, passengers need cast-iron assurances that their rights will not be weakened and that airlines cannot use reform as cover to shift the cost of disruption on to travellers.’

The Conservatives have also criticised the plan, with shadow transport secretary Richard Holden saying families could find themselves ‘herded on to a different plane, at a time of the airline’s choosing’.

‘The honest message is that Britain is exposed to fuel supply risks that a properly energy-secure country would not face,’ he added.

What does the airline industry say?

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander discussed the plans with key industry figures on April 30, including representatives from Heathrow, Gatwick, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and easyJet.

Tim Alderslade, chief executive of Airlines UK, which represents UK-registered carriers, said: ‘UK airlines continue to operate normally and are not experiencing issues with jet fuel supply.

‘We are planning to take our customers on their well-earned holidays this summer and will always look after them in line with our obligations.

‘We welcome the Government’s contingency planning, including slot alleviation, which is one measure which enables airlines to adjust schedules responsibly, avoid unnecessary flying and continue operating efficiently while protecting connectivity for passengers.’

Asked about the temporary rule change, airline industry analyst John Strickland told Sky News on Sunday: ‘It’s a very good idea, it’s something the airlines have been discussing for a few weeks with the Government.

‘While they would wish to fly their full flying programme this summer, because of course there’s so many of us travelling, it’s a time of year when they would aim to actually make money from that, they have to take every bit of contingency planning they can in the light of the complexity of fuel supplies coming out of this ongoing war with Iran.

‘So much fuel coming from the Middle East is trapped.’

He added: ‘And rather than wait to a point where there could be a crisis in terms of supply, they (airlines) want to put in place measures now which allow them flexibility to plan ahead, so that basically, they can cancel the weakest flights if they need to.’

Asked if the temporary rule could compromise customers’ plans, especially in case of delays and cancellations, he said: ‘I think this is, again, why the flexibility is important, because airlines have to weigh that up, because they also don’t want to have passengers missing connections.’