Travellers across Asia faced major disruptions on Thursday, May 7, as airlines cancelled 194 flights and delayed 2,603 others, affecting thousands of passengers in Thailand, Singapore, India, China, South Korea, and Malaysia.
Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India, was the worst-affected hub, with 365 delays. Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan, experienced 282 delays, making it the second most disrupted airport. Shanghai Airlines was the hardest-hit carrier, cancelling 58 flights.
The cause of the disruptions remains unclear, but concerns over jet fuel costs and supply have been raised. The US-Iran war, which began after joint US-Israeli strikes on Iranian sites on February 28, has choked global oil supply. Iran retaliated by closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of global oil passes, impacting fuel availability for airlines.
In the UK, the government has introduced a temporary rule change allowing airlines to merge flights and combine passengers to reduce fuel consumption. This aims to preserve jet fuel and reassure holidaymakers that trips will not be cancelled outright, by reducing the number of near-empty planes in the air.
