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As a result of an increase in the price of crude oil, El Al have announced that they have been forced to add a fuel surcharge of between $5 and $25 for each leg of the flight.  Amit Livni, Head of Marketing said that the price of oil now stands 80 percent higher than the $33 a barrel recorded in January 2009.

El Al will increase the fuel surcharge on all tickets on flights sold from Israel, however they announced that they will maintain low prices on tickets to leisure destinations such as London, Paris and Amsterdam.  The additional fuel surcharge will not be applied to tickets bought with frequent flyer miles or on El Al’s new flight to Sao Paolo.

The additional charge will be $5 for each leg of the flight on short haul flights; medium range flights will cost an additional $10 per leg and long haul (with the exception of Brazil) will cost $25.  A spokesperson for El Al recommended travelers interested in benefiting from the lower prices should purchase their tickets before the new charge comes into effect.

Amit Livni, El Al’s head of marketing explained that the decision to add the extra charge was made once the price of oil passed $60 a barrel.  He said that El Al wanted to keep attractive prices for tickets bought to holiday destinations, with the emphasis on those planning family summer holidays, to such locations as London, Paris, Amsterdam and Brazil.

Livni added that the lower prices would only be valid on tickets bought before Thursday 21st May.