SIA fare increase and fuel surcharge

plane ticket price have gone up in recent months on the back of stronger demand for air travel, and the next hike is due to hit travellers on Thursday, when Singapore Airlines (SIA) increases fare.
The last time the carrier increased its fares was in October last year, said travel agents, who were told of the April 1 hike in a circular issued by SIA earlier this month.Singapore Airlines will increase its fuel surcharge for tickets issued on or after 27 January 2011, as a result of the recent sharp and sustained escalation in the price of jet fuel.
The price of jet fuel is now above USD110 per barrel.
In its note, SIA did not specify the quantum of the fare increase, but informed the agents that the booking system would be updated to reflect the revised fares. SIA travellers can expect to pay about S$50 (US$36) to S$100 (US$71) more on top of this from April 1, The Straits Times found out.

Industry players said airlines had started to increase their fares towards the end of the third quarter of last year, as demand for air travel picked up, after a prolonged slump brought on by the global economic downturn of late 2008.

Compared with a year ago, fares have gone up by about 10-15 per cent on average, said Alicia Seah, senior vice-president of marketing and public relations at CTC Holidays.

When contacted Monday, SIA said without confirming or denying the impending increases that its fares were a function of market demand and supply, and adjusted according to market conditions.
A spokesman said: "Actual changes in fares vary from route to route, and a range of fares is offered in different booking classes. It is not possible to give specific figures relating to how airfares may have changed over a set period of time."
Chan Brothers spokesman Jane Chang said: "The combination of fuel surcharge and ticket price would bring the overall airfare to more or less on a par with where it was three years ago." Said Seah: "The fare hikes that we have seen and the increase in SIA fares from next month are expected, given that both inbound and outbound demand are picking up and will continue to strengthen, with many big events coming up."
The increases in airfares are being seen across all markets and regions, industry experts said. According to the American Express Business Travel 2010 forecast released late last year, ticket prices could increase by up to 5 per cent globally for economy-class short-haul flights.
Business-class long-haul fares are projected to increase by up to 6 per cent.
Retiree Tan Siow Leong, 74, who travels to Shenzhen in China several times a year and recently paid S$635 (US$454) for a SilkAir flight next month, said the increases were bearable.

He said: "Although the fare is higher than what most other airlines charge, I prefer SIA because I find the flight more comfortable and the timings good.
"The S$500 that I normally pay is already quite expensive. If I have to pay about $50 more, I may look for an alternative."