Airline fuel surcharge starting to wind down

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May 14, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos in need of cheaper flights soon may find a window until the end of May, as airline fuel surcharges will go down to their lowest level since reaching new highs.

In an advisory, the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) trimmed the fuel surcharge by three notches to Level 15 for May 16 to 31, reflecting the gradual return to normalcy in the petroleum market.

This is also the lowest rate since the fuel surcharge ballooned to a record Level 19 in the second half of April, with fares padded by as high as P15,400.

At Level 15, airlines can slap a fuel surcharge of P491 to P1,436 for local flights and P1,621.42 to P12,056 for international services, depending on the distance. Passengers on long-haul trips, particularly to North America, will pay the highest at P11,481.90.

Likewise, overseas Filipino workers deployed to the Middle East will pay as much as P5,579.13. Travelers going on a quick trip to Bali, Japan or South Korea will be charged P2,522.32, while to Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, the surcharge is pegged at P2,242.46.

Locally, airlines can impose a fuel surcharge of P1,338 for Manila flights to Cotabato, Davao and Zamboanga and P1,436 for General Santos City.

CAB placed the exchange rate at P61.18 to $1 for airlines collecting the fuel surcharge in foreign currencies.

The board is currently revising the fuel surcharge every 15 days, superseding the usual period of 30 days, so it has more flexibility in adjusting fares based on developments in the oil market.

Moreover, the oil price shocks have compelled Filipinos to reduce leisure bookings. Supposedly, May is a peak season for travel in the Philippines due to the dry weather, but airlines are getting fewer bookings, as Filipinos save up for tougher times.

Inflation, or the general increase in commodity prices, swelled to 7.2 percent in April, propelled largely by cost spikes in food and transport. Meanwhile, the economy, measured as the gross domestic product, grew by just 2.8 percent in the first quarter.

Airlines are feeling punches in the gut, too, with Cebu Pacific swinging to a net loss in the three months to March, while Philippine Airlines saw a slight dip in its profit.

Jet fuel prices have decreased by 10 percent to $162.89 per barrel as of May 8, but this is still far from the previous average of below $100 prior to the US-Israel offensives on Iran.