The travel warning comes as a watchdog says we are facing ‘the largest energy crisis’
While long airport queues are adding a different kind of burn to Brit’s holidays in the sun, there’s something else that might cause a sting.
Holidaymakers have been issued an urgent warning that there could ‘soon’ be a slew of flight cancellations on the horizon.
This comes as the Middle East conflict has caused oil supplies to become restricted.
And it was warned yesterday (16 April) that Europe has ‘maybe six weeks or so [of] jet fuel left’ – taking us to the beginning of June, AKA when plenty of us start travelling off on our summer holidays abroad.
Iran continues to have a strong hold on tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz, and Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), said this is causing ‘the largest energy crisis we have ever faced’.
The head of the world’s energy watchdog told the Associated Press that Asian countries such as Japan, India and China that rely on energy from the Middle East are on ‘the front line’.
However, the pressure will then crank on ‘Europe and the Americas’.
Birol explained that if the Strait of Hormuz does not get reopened, then some flights in Europe ‘from city A to city B might be cancelled’ due to a lack of jet fuel.
The IEA said in its monthly oil market report that the crisis ‘has thrown a proverbial wrench into the inner workings of the aviation fuel markets’.
A spokesperson for the UK government said airlines in the UK ‘are clear that they are currently not seeing disruption to supply’.
And Airlines UK also said it wasn’t seeing disruption to jet fuel supply.
It told the BBC that it is talking to the government about ‘crucial measures’ that would be needed to support the industry in the event of fuel disruption ‘including reducing regulatory burdens, to protect consumers, trade, and the UK’s competitiveness’.
Earlier on Thursday, easyJet chief executive Kenton Jarvis said all the airports it serves are ‘operating as normal’.
He continued: “We only ever in this industry have three to four weeks visibility (of jet fuel supplies), and that is the same as it was pre-crisis.
“We have visibility to the middle of May, and we have no concerns.
“What we’re seeing is airports and fuel suppliers working well to bring jet fuel to the airports.”
A Government spokesperson said: “We continue to engage with British airlines to support their operations against the backdrop of war in the Middle East, and to limit the impact on passengers.
“Most airlines purchase their aviation fuel in advance to offset price fluctuations, however we are aware of the impact to businesses, and are working with international allies to see a reopening of the Strait as soon as possible.”
