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“Japan fares triple, Americas fees hit KRW 600,000 (about $450)… April flights in crisis as fuel surcharges skyrocket”

Starting in April, fuel surcharges on international tickets are set to jump sharply, leaving travelers facing much higher costs for overseas trips. A simultaneous rise in global oil prices and a weak won pushed the surcharge up by the largest single-month increase on record.

On the 16th, airlines reported that the Singapore jet fuel price (MOPS), which determines April’s international surcharge, hit 326.71 cents per gallon (about $3.27). With the won–dollar exchange rate flirting with the ₩1,500 mark (about $1.13), April’s fuel surcharge was set at step 18 out of 33.

That’s a 12-step leap from March’s step 6 — the biggest increase since the current system began in 2016, and the highest step level in roughly three and a half years.

Those higher surcharges are already showing up in ticket prices. On Korean Air short-haul routes, the surcharge rises from KRW 13,500 (about $10.13) one-way in March to KRW 42,000 (about $31.50) in April — nearly three times higher.

Long-haul routes are hit much harder. Flights to the U.S., including New York and Atlanta, jump from KRW 99,000 (about $74.25) one-way to KRW 303,000 (about $227.25). That pushes round-trip fuel surcharges to just over KRW 600,000 (about $450.00), adding more than KRW 400,000 (about $300.00) compared with March.

Asiana Airlines shows a similar pattern. Short-haul surcharges climb from KRW 14,600 (about $10.95) to KRW 43,900 (about $32.93), while long-haul surcharges rise from KRW 78,600 (about $58.95) to KRW 251,900 (about $188.93). Midrange routes to Southeast Asia and the Middle East also move into the KRW 200,000 range (around $150.00), making overall ticket-price increases unavoidable.

If your travel dates are set, it pays to buy tickets now. Fuel surcharges are applied based on the ticketing date — the date you pay — not the travel date.

If you complete payment in March for flights departing in April or later, you’ll lock in the current step-6 rate. But if you ticket after April begins, you’ll face the much higher surcharge even on the same flight.