MEA halves surcharge

Middle East Airlines (MEA), the national air carrier, announced that it has lowered the 15 percent surcharge on tickets to 7.5 percent. Mohammad Hout, MEA Chairman made the announcement yesterday.

The 15 percent surcharge on tickets was imposed when oil prices began to climb in 2004 and amended in 2011. MEA had been observing the price of oil since June 2014. MEA Marketing Director Walid Abi Lamaa said: “When we became confident that this was an ongoing trend, we took the decision.” Abi Lamaa said the reduction is not permanent. “Of course if prices go back up for a constant period of time, we will restore the surcharge,” he said.

A round trip ticket to London now costs $480, down by $85 or 7.5 percent. Tickets to Africa were reduced by around $100. MEA’s revenues from the surcharge were close to $100 million a year. “The flight cost is dropping because of the drop in the oil price. So, it will balance out the revenues,” said Abi Lamaa.

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), airline companies store large quantities of fuel in light of the previously mounting prices of oil. They sign contracts to buy fuel according to fixed prices to protect themselves from market fluctuations.