MOSCOW (Reuters) - UAL Corp's (UAUA.O) United Airlines has postponed opening a route to Russia from the United States by six months due to soaring jet fuel prices, a source with the Russian Civil Aviation Agency said on Monday.
"They have approached (the agency) to delay their flights by half a year. They want to start in a more favorable year to show better performance and not at a time of rising fuel prices," the source, who asked not to be named, told Reuters.
Market prices for jet fuel have soared this year alongside skyrocketing crude oil, which, industry experts say, will make carriers cut jobs, sell part of their fleet or go bankrupt.
In Russia, the world's second-largest exporter of crude oil, jet kerosene prices in some airports have exceeded those in Europe, prompting the anti-monopoly service to launch an investigation into the local aviation fuel market.
United Airlines initially planned to launch flights to Russia from the U.S. at the end of October. The source said America's second-largest airline now plans to start flying next March.
It will join the other three airlines now operating direct regular flights between Russia and the United States; the U.S. Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) and American Airlines (AMR.N) as well as Russia's flagship carrier Aeroflot (AFLT.MM).
(Reporting by Anton Doroshev; Writing by Maria Kiselyova, editing by Will Waterman) 07/07/08 11:17 ET
"They have approached (the agency) to delay their flights by half a year. They want to start in a more favorable year to show better performance and not at a time of rising fuel prices," the source, who asked not to be named, told Reuters.
Market prices for jet fuel have soared this year alongside skyrocketing crude oil, which, industry experts say, will make carriers cut jobs, sell part of their fleet or go bankrupt.
In Russia, the world's second-largest exporter of crude oil, jet kerosene prices in some airports have exceeded those in Europe, prompting the anti-monopoly service to launch an investigation into the local aviation fuel market.
United Airlines initially planned to launch flights to Russia from the U.S. at the end of October. The source said America's second-largest airline now plans to start flying next March.
It will join the other three airlines now operating direct regular flights between Russia and the United States; the U.S. Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) and American Airlines (AMR.N) as well as Russia's flagship carrier Aeroflot (AFLT.MM).
(Reporting by Anton Doroshev; Writing by Maria Kiselyova, editing by Will Waterman) 07/07/08 11:17 ET
