INACA pushes for adjustment of "fuel surcharge" and flight fares

The Indonesian National Airlines Association (INACA) is pushing for adjustments to the aviation fuel surcharge and the upper limit fares (TBA) for domestic flights to safeguard the sustainability of the national aviation industry. This is in connection with the increase in national aviation jet fuel (avtur) prices announced by Pertamina, the national avtur supplier. “This relates to the rise in national aviation avtur prices, where the increase takes effect from Wednesday, 1 April 2026,” said INACA Chairman Denon Prawiraatmadja in a statement in Jakarta on Thursday. INACA stated that avtur prices have been adjusted for domestic use from 1 to 30 April 2026. For international flights, prices have also risen, but vary by airport. For example, he said, at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang, the domestic avtur price from 1 to 31 March 2026 was Rp13,656.51 per litre. However, for the period 1 to 30 April 2026, the price becomes Rp23,551.08 per litre, an increase of 72.45 per cent. “If compared to the average domestic avtur price in 2019 (when TBA was first implemented) of Rp7,970 per litre, the increase reaches 295 per cent,” he stated. For international flights, the price has risen from US$0.742 per litre to US$1.338 per litre, an increase of 80.32 per cent. Compared to 2019, when the international avtur price in Indonesia was US$0.6 per litre at the time TBA was implemented, the increase amounts to 223 per cent. He explained that they had previously anticipated that avtur prices would rise following global prices due to the impact of the geopolitical crisis in the Middle East. Therefore, they are pushing for adjustments to the aviation fuel surcharge and domestic flight TBA. According to him, adjustments are necessary given the very high increase in avtur prices, and on the other hand, avtur affects around 40 per cent of the costs incurred by airlines. He added that adjustments to the fuel surcharge and TBA need to be implemented immediately so that airlines can continue operating while maintaining flight safety (safety insurance). “And to maintain the financial health of airlines so they can remain operational (business sustainability) and provide national air transport connectivity,” Denon continued. Previously, INACA had requested increases in fuel surcharge and TBA of 15 per cent each. However, given that the fuel increase is higher than anticipated, INACA is requesting further adjustments to the fuel surcharge and TBA in line with the current avtur price increase.