Airfares set to go down as fuel surcharges drop
Published May 12, 2026 05:59 pm
Planes taxi and depart from an air taxi terminal at an airport in Pasay City on Sunday, March 15. To combat rising jet fuel costs and keep air travel accessible, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has ordered a reduction in passenger service charges and navigation fees at all CAAP-operated airports. (Photo by John Louie Abrina I MB)
Travelers can breathe a slight sigh of relief when booking flights in the second half of May after the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) approved lowering the fuel surcharge that airlines collect on airfares by three notches to Level 15.
In an advisory on Tuesday, May 12, the CAB approved bringing the fuel surcharge down to Level 15 from Level 18 for the period covering May 16 to 31, as jet fuel prices continue to ease in recent weeks.
Under Level 15, passengers may pay an additional fee of ₱491 for domestic flights to cities within a distance of 200 kilometers (km), which include flights from Cebu to Bacolod and Dumaguete.
The surcharge could go as high as ₱1,436 for flights to cities located more than 1,000 km away, such as flights between Manila and General Santos.
For international routes, the minimum increase in airfares is ₱1,621.42 for flights to nearby destinations like Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Brunei.
Meanwhile, the maximum surcharge is set at ₱12,056 for a one-way flight on routes beyond 14,000 km.
At the current Level 18, which is in effect until May 15, passengers are paying an additional ₱593 to ₱1,734 for domestic flights and between ₱1,958.44 and ₱14,561.87 for international flights.
The passenger fuel surcharge is an optional fee that airlines may impose and collect to recover costs and losses resulting from spikes in fuel prices. This is not part of the base airfare and may be reduced or removed depending on prevailing jet fuel prices.
The latest monitoring by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) showed that average global jet fuel prices declined by 10 percent to $162.89 per barrel as of the week ending May 8, compared to the previous week’s $181.22 per barrel.
Fuel prices in Asia and Oceania, which cover the Philippines, are slightly lower at $158.94 per barrel, according to IATA.
While still far from the previous level of below $100 per barrel before the start of the ongoing Middle East war, jet fuel prices have slightly eased in recent weeks amid hopes that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen, alleviating pressure on the global oil market.
Given the volatility in prices, the CAB earlier revised the evaluation period for the surcharge from once a month to a shorter 15-day cycle to allow for a faster response to market changes.
For the second half of May, the CAB has set the applicable conversion rate at ₱61.18 per United States dollar for airlines intending to collect the passenger fuel surcharge.