Budget Airlines Ask Trump Administration for Billions as Fuel Costs Rise

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/27/business/budget-airlines-trump-bailout.html

Budget Airlines Ask Trump Administration for Billions as Fuel Costs Rise
A trade group for the airlines is seeking $2.5 billion to help offset the big jump in jet fuel costs since the start of U.S.-Israeli attacks against Iran.
By Karoun Demirjian and Lauren Hirsch
April 27, 2026

A trade group representing low-cost airlines said Monday that it was asking the Trump administration for $2.5 billion to offset some of the cost of fuel, which has surged because of the war with Iran.

Jet fuel prices climbed to about $4.10 a gallon in North America at the end of last week, an increase of about 88 percent from the same time last year, according to industry data. That has led many airlines to raise ticket prices.

“Since February, jet fuel prices have increased by nearly 100 percent and are placing significant financial pressure on value airlines,” the trade group, the Association of Value Airlines, said in a statement. The group added that the $2.5 billion “liquidity pool” it was seeking would be “used exclusively to offset incremental fuel costs, as a necessary and targeted measure to stabilize operations and keep airfares affordable during this period of volatility.”

Separately, one of the trade group’s members, Spirit Airlines, is negotiating a loan of up to $500 million from the Trump administration. Under the developing deal, the government would have the right to purchase ownership stakes in the airline through financial instruments known as warrants. The government could end up owning as much as 90 percent of the company, which is in its second bankruptcy in two years.

At a bankruptcy court hearing last week, Spirit’s lawyer, Marshall Huebner of the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell, confirmed the discussions with the government, stressing that time was of the essence. “The cash actually available to Spirit to fund ongoing operations is not going to last for very much longer,” he said.

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