Alaska Airlines’ parent company cut the carrier’s capacity outlook for the first half of 2022 due to “volatile” fuel prices “as a result of the conflict in Europe and Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine,” according to a Tuesday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Alaska Air Group filing indicated first-half capacity would decline 3 percent to 5 percent from the first half of 2019. During its January earnings call, the company had expected first-half capacity to be flat or slightly up from 2019 levels. It also had anticipated fuel costs to be in the range of $2.45 to $2.50 per gallon, but now expects first-quarter costs to be between $2.60 and $2.65 per gallon.
Still, the company indicated it plans to return to 100 percent pre-Covid-19 capacity by summer, followed by growth in the second half of the year, which is in line with what it projected in January. It also will “continue to adjust capacity as necessary in response to the evolving fuel environment.”
Other major carriers did not immediately disclose any changes to capacity plans. A Delta Air Lines spokesperson told BTN the company plans to discuss fuel and capacity issues March 15 at the J.P. Morgan Industrials Conference. American Airlines and United Airlines, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment, also plan to present at the event.
Southwest Airlines wouldn’t discuss potential schedule changes but did indicate that it has fuel hedges in place to help mitigate fluctuation in the energy market. It currently is approximately 64 percent hedged for 2022, 37 percent for 2023 and 17 percent for 2024, according to a company spokesperson.
“The current energy price environment is exactly why we have a systematic hedging program—to provide insurance in the near-term, particularly over the timeframe of our published schedule,” he said.
[Update, March 9, 3:50pm EST] An American Airlines spokesperson told BTN the carrier was “closely monitoring the situation” but hadn’t yet made any changes.
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