Unfortunately it’s not a U.S. domestic carrier, or even one of the major Western carriers. In these days of finding airline hare-like quick to raise fuel surcharges and tortoise-like slow to drop them, Emirates Airlines has indeed dropped all their fuel surcharges.
The airline statement is as follows and it is effective immediately.
“In line with the recent decrease in fuel prices, Emirates has removed its fuel surcharge on all tickets. The removal of this surcharge reflects our longstanding commitment to our customers.
We promised our customers from the outset that we would eliminate the surcharge as soon as it was commercially viable, and this has now been done. We continue to closely monitor the situation.”
While other carriers have been quick to raise fuel surcharges with lightning speed, they haven’t followed Emirates Airlines in dropping them. Quite frankly, I don’t expect them to do so anytime soon. If at all. At least British Airways didn’t send another fuel surcharge INCREASE notice.
And yes, I understand that airlines need to make money and that fuel is a major expense. I also understand that the current dip in prices could be temporary. (As does Emirates, as they note they will, “continue to monitor” the situation. Presumably the charge would be re-introduced if prices rise again.)
My issue, shared by many travelers, is the disingenuous nature of these fees. Fuel surcharges are often arbitrary, non-advertised and non-discountable. Frankly, they are fare hikes, pure and simple.
A recent example from Lufthansa, though other carriers have similar policies, confirms this. I had clients flying to Lebanon and Syria from Helsinki for the summer to lead an educational tour.
Due the unrest in the Middle East and unease on the part of tour participants, the trip was canceled. The Lufthansa tickets were nonrefundable. Now, with such a ticket, Lufthansa allows taxes to be refunded, however, fuel surcharges are nonrefundable as well as the airfare.
Now, of the surcharge is honestly for fuel and if a passenger doesn’t fly, they obviously don’t use the fuel. But fare rules never relied on logic. (The airline means it — our agency learned this the hard way when we mistakenly refunded a fuel surcharge last year, and got billed later. )
This year our agency refunded only the actual taxes of $99 and let Lufthansa keep $138 in “fuel surcharges” on a $253 fare.
Some travelers may wonder, who cares how much of a ticket price is considered a “fare” and how much is considered a “fuel surcharge.” Besides issues like refunds, a fare is often be discounted or put on sale, but not a fuel surcharge. (This really shows up with children’s fares and some carriers also charge fuel surcharges on mileage awards tickets.) Plus, airlines can escape commissions on fuel surcharges when some international airline airfares are still commissionable. And of course, they have the handy excuse that the greedy oil companies made them do it.
On principle, it would seem more transparent and honest to include the cost of fuel in the airfares.
Emirates does fly to the U.S. with connections via Dubai to a number of cities in Europe, Asia and Africa. They provide some significant competition on some international routes to south Asia and Africa, but probably not enough to make carriers change their ways on transatlantic or transpacific routes. But it’s a start.
Janice Hough is a California-based travel agent a travel blogger and a part-time comedy writer. A frequent flier herself, she’s been doing battle with airlines, hotels, and other travel companies for over three decades. Besides writing for Travelers United, Janice has a humor blog at Leftcoastsportsbabe.com (Warning, the political and sports humor therein does not represent the views of anyone but herself.)
