Europe warns of jet‑fuel crunch
Airports and airlines in Europe are warning of a jet‑fuel shortage that could show up within about three weeks if instability around the Strait of Hormuz continues — industry sources say as many as 100 EU airports could be affected and up to 170 million summer passengers are at risk of disruption (visaverge.com). The warning comes amid oil-price pressure that pushed crude above $103 a barrel after recent geopolitics, a move cited as a trigger for market strain and potential route and fare impacts (el-balad.com) (ibtimes.com.au).
Europe’s airport industry says a jet-fuel shortage could hit within three weeks if shipping through the Strait of Hormuz does not resume in a stable way. (cnbc.com) Airports Council International Europe said in an April 9 letter to the European Commission that the risk is “systemic” and could disrupt the summer travel season. Reuters reported the group asked for European Union-wide monitoring and emergency coordination. (rte.ie) The trade group represents more than 600 airports in 55 countries and says its members handle more than 95% of Europe’s commercial air traffic. ACI Europe’s own traffic data show the region’s airports handled a record 2.6 billion passengers in 2025. (aci-europe.org 1) (aci-europe.org 2) The bottleneck is not all oil. The European Commission said on April 10 there is “no immediate risk” to the European Union’s oil and gas supply overall, but industry and Commission officials singled out jet fuel as the main weak point because Europe still imports part of what its airports burn. (energy.ec.europa.eu) (adept.travel) That vulnerability runs through one narrow waterway. The International Energy Agency says the Strait of Hormuz is the main export route for oil from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Bahrain and Iran. (iea.org) The United States Energy Information Administration said flows through Hormuz in 2024 and early 2025 accounted for more than one-quarter of global seaborne oil trade and about one-fifth of global oil and petroleum product consumption. It said few alternative routes exist if the strait is closed. (eia.gov) European aviation is especially exposed because summer demand is already building. EUROCONTROL published its spring 2026 forecast on March 26 and said it had updated traffic assumptions to reflect the latest Middle East developments. (eurocontrol.int) (ansperformance.eu) Airports and airlines are warning first about fuel availability, but passengers would feel it through fewer flights, route cuts and higher fares if carriers have to ration supply. CNBC and Reuters both reported the industry expects wider economic damage if the disruption lasts into peak season. (cnbc.com) (globalbankingandfinance.com) For now, Brussels is not releasing emergency oil stocks, and the warning remains conditional on continued instability around Hormuz. The next test is simple: whether tanker traffic and fuel deliveries normalize before Europe’s summer schedule reaches full speed. (energy.ec.europa.eu) (cnbc.com)
