Jet‑fuel pinch in Italy

A fuel supplier in Italy has already told airlines it is rationing jet fuel at Bologna, Milan Linate, Treviso, and Venice, with priority going to ambulance flights, state flights, and flights longer than three hours. The limits were described as lasting at least until April 9, which turned a supply worry into an operational one. (ansa.it) Italy’s civil aviation chief, Pierluigi Di Palma of the Italian Civil Aviation Authority, said the immediate strain was tied to heavy Easter traffic rather than a full physical cutoff of oil flows. In the same report, Air Bp Italia’s notice to carriers showed how fast a busy travel period can expose weak spots in airport fuel logistics. (ansa.it) The weak spot is simple: airports do not run on a giant national tank that can be tapped instantly. They depend on suppliers, truck movements, storage, and delivery slots, so one supplier tightening volumes at four airports can force airlines to juggle fuel loads and schedules like a restaurant running short on gas before dinner service. (ansa.it) These are not tiny airports. In February 2026, Milan Linate handled 847,615 passengers, Venice handled 776,891, Bologna handled 681,623, and Treviso handled 222,196, according to Assaeroporti, the Italian airports association. (assaeroporti.com) That matters because spring is when European air travel starts climbing toward the summer peak. Italian airports handled 14.24 million passengers in February 2026 alone, up 5.6% from a year earlier, which means any fuel bottleneck hits a system that is already busier than it was in early 2025. (assaeroporti.com) Ryanair told ANSA there were no short-term fuel shortages for it yet, but that its suppliers could guarantee fuel only until mid-to-late May. The airline added that if the Middle East conflict continued into May or June, it could not rule out supply risks at some European airports. (ansa.it) ANSA also reported that Europe imports about 30% of the jet fuel it needs, citing International Air Transport Association data, and said refinery closures in recent years have widened the gap. That is why this is not just an Italy story: when a continent buys a big share of a critical fuel from elsewhere, shipping shocks travel straight into airport operations. (ansa.it) Fuel prices in Italy were already flashing stress in March. ANSA reported diesel at €1.753 per liter on ordinary roads and as high as €2.50 on motorways, while hauliers reported supply problems in Campania and Lombardy, showing that transport fuel strain was not confined to aviation. (ansa.it) There is another layer now: airlines in Europe also have to comply with ReFuelEU Aviation rules, and Italy has designated the Italian Civil Aviation Authority as the body that monitors fuel suppliers, airport managers, and carriers under that system. Those rules are about cleaner fuel supply and anti-tankering, not today’s shortage, but they add another piece to how fuel has to be planned and documented at airports. (enac.gov.it) So the near-term risk is not that Italy suddenly runs out of all aviation fuel on one day. The risk is a chain of smaller failures — capped deliveries, awkward refueling priorities, heavier traffic, and airlines carrying extra fuel from other airports — that turns into delays, payload cuts, or selective cancellations first. (ansa.it) That is why a fuel notice at four Italian airports can spill into the rest of Europe. Venice, Bologna, and Milan Linate sit inside one of the continent’s densest short-haul networks, so when aircraft leave late, refuel elsewhere, or swap rotations, the disruption spreads the way one blocked lane backs up an entire motorway. (assaeroporti.com)