TEHRAN- As the war on Iran passes the 100-day mark, the United States is paying a devastating price? with its airline industry suffering mounting losses that are now being passed on to American travelers.

New data reveals that U.S. airlines paid nearly $6.5 billion in fuel costs in April alone, according to a report from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). That figure is up more than 26 percent from March and a staggering 78 percent from April 2025.

The cost per gallon of jet fuel in April reached $4.11 — 94 cents higher than March and $1.81 above the same month last year.

The root cause, industry officials say, is the ongoing U.S. and Israeli military campaign against Iran, which began in late February. In response, Iran’s military restricted transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes.

Efforts by the Trump administration to negotiate reopening the strait have repeatedly failed. Over the weekend, Iran and Israel exchanged strikes for the first time in weeks, setting back peace talks once again.

As a result, traffic through the strait remains critically low. 

$18 billion wiped from profit forecasts 

The soaring jet fuel costs are tearing through airlines’ margins. A Sunday report from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) now expects global airlines to achieve a combined net profit of just $23 billion this year, a shocking $18 billion less than its previous projection.

The IATA, which represents more than 370 U.S. and international carriers, also predicts that net profit per passenger will plummet from $9.10 in 2025 to only $4.50 this year.

Willie Walsh, the IATA’s director general, said bluntly that the war on Iran and rising fuel costs “have shifted the outlook for airlines to the worse.”

“Some of the additional cost is being recuperated by adjusting prices and improving efficiency, but it will not be sufficient to maintain profitability at the previous year’s level,” Walsh added. “Smaller carriers that started the year with weak balance sheets are certainly struggling.”

* American travelers pay the price

In the United States, passengers are already feeling the pain. Major carriers have raised baggage fees to offset higher fuel costs. Spirit Airlines ceased operations in May after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy twice in the prior two years.

Last month, Airlines for America warned that domestic airlines are cutting flight frequencies on some routes, deferring aircraft deliveries, and raising fares “when necessary” ahead of the summer travel season, including during the FIFA World Cup, when millions of Americans and international visitors are expected to travel.

For U.S. taxpayers and travelers alike, the cost of war on Iran is no longer distant. It is showing up at the airport, in every ticket, and on every baggage tag.