Hilary wrote:
Airlines with serious hedging are much more protected against this

It'd be interesting to know which airlines have this sort of flexibility -
is there a webpage somewhere that lists it, or is it a matter of searching
for each airline individually?


I don't know if there is a comprehensive list. Soutwest is one of the
more famous cases because they had locked in a very large percentage of
their fuel needs at $25 per barrel. I think their current edges are at a
higher price, but still quite low compared to the rest of the industry.
This means that they know how much most of their flights will cost to
operate well in advance and are sheltered by wild fluctuations.

Their hedges not only allow WN to offer remain profitable without too
many fuel increases, but it also give WN assurance that a ticket sold
today will still be profitable 6 months down the road.

Delta sold its hedge contracts for 80 million just before the fuel
prices started to go up big time. That year alone, the fuel increases
added $400 million to Delta's fuel bill. They haven't recovered since.