Emerald Airlines founder: 'In a very small margin business, it's a real challenge if this continues'

Emerald Airlines founder and executive chairman Conor McCarthy, speaking at the CAPA Airline Leader Summit - Airlines in Transition, in response to a question regarding whether or not the airline plans to introduce fuel surcharges due to supply issues stemming from the disruption of the Strait of Hormuz, stated (23-Apr-2026) "Not really, no. Our competition doesn't apply fuel surcharges, so we don't want to be out on our own". Mr McCarthy explained: "We operate the Aer Lingus Regional network between Ireland and the UK, about 45,000 flights a year", adding: "And our main competitors on about 85% of our capacity are Ryanair and easyJet, both of whom are very heavily hedged". He continued: "So, we hedge our requirements each quarter… Right now, we're seeing a small price increase because of the unhedged portion. But as this crisis continues, the impact of the high spot prices is significant on our cost base". Mr McCarthy acknowledged: "At the same time, our market's fairly well balanced in terms of price and demand. So there's only so much you could pass on to the consumer at this stage", but concluded: "In a very small margin business, it's a real challenge if this continues". [more - CAPA TV]