Fuel prices

Trains Magazine Passenger
1

Stumbled across an article in an Airline Pilot magazine about average Jet fuel prices for several calendar years. Price given in Petroleum Per Barrel which is 42 gal/barrel. figures are approximate due to being in a graph.

  1. for 2006 $82/B or $1.95 Gallon.

2 2007 $85/B or $2.02 Gallon

  1. 2008 $122/B or $ 2.90 Gallon

  2. 2009 $65/B or $1.54 Gallon

  3. 2010 $84/B or $2.00 Gallon only thru Sept

The FAA stated that in the FY ending Sept fuel costs account for approximately 25% of total airline operating costs. So not knowing what oil is going to cost it will be very hard to know how much airline fuel costs will go up. As someone else stated the fuel used/mile on short flights is much higher because of the lower altitudes that those planes operate at. So if fuel goes to $4.00 a gallon (am not sure that will happen) the short flights may be cut back except where an airline can guarantee a full flight?

The effects of expiring fuel hedges and inability to renew many of them is going to increase the cost of fuel.

2

Those price variations are probably a good guideline for price variations on most petroleum-based products. When the airlines are paying more for kerosene, the railroads will also be paying more for No. 2 diesel oil.

3

The fuel costs are in taking off, so the more taking off per hour a plane does, the higher the fuel cost… SO short hops are not cost effective and could actually be expensive for the number of passengers available. Even with the cigar planes, money goes up with the plane but not down.