Seven Italian airports are now operating under emergency rationing of jet fuel – the most visible sign yet that the conflict in the Middle East is falling squarely on European travellers.
Air BP Italia has issued emergency notices limit refueling bee Bologna, Milan Linate, Venice Marco Polo, Treviso, Brindisi, Pescara and Reggio Calabria, with ceilings as low as 2,000 liters per aircraft for non-priority short-haul flights.
The restrictions are formal. According to Air BP Italia – the specialized aviation division of the British Petroleum group – the measures are aimed at preserving the remaining reserves for essential services, with priority given to ambulance flights, state flights and routes longer than three hours. Everyone else gets what’s left, subject to a hard ceiling.
Why 2,000 liters can hardly get you off the ground
The cap sounds manageable. That’s not it. Technical calculations provided by pilots to Il Corriere della Sera confirm that 2,000 liters gives a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 less than an hour of flight autonomy – not enough to complete a direct domestic route, such as one connecting Veneto to Sicily, without stopping to refuel elsewhere.
Airlines are therefore forced to add technical stops – often at fuel-rich hubs such as Rome Fiumicino or Zurich – or switch planes, extending routes and increasing costs.
The solution has a name in the industry: ‘tankering’, where aircraft carry extra fuel at their departure airport. It works, but it adds weight, burns more fuel overall, and puts stress on an already overloaded system.
How it got here
The main cause is the closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the US-Israeli conflict with Iran that started on February 28. The Strait carries about 20% of global oil production, and its effective closure has forced tankers to divert their route around the Cape of Good Hope, adding 10 to 14 days to delivery schedules.
Northern Italy’s fuel depots, which were already stretched out over the busy Easter weekend, are depleting their strategic reserves faster than expected.
Brindisi, Pescara and Reggio Calabria joined the rationing list on April 6, following disruptions that began two days earlier at northern airports. In other words: the crisis is moving south.
What comes next
Italy may be the first, but probably not the last. Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary has warned of wider European disruptions, predicting flight cancellations of 5 to 10 percent across the continent if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed throughout the summer.
For now, travelers flying to or via Milan Linate, Bologna, Venice, Treviso, Brindisi, Pescara or Reggio Calabria can expect possible delays, unscheduled fuel stops and last-minute schedule changes. Booking through Milan Malpensa or Rome Fiumicino – currently unaffected by rationing – is the most reliable way to avoid disruption.
The era of plentiful, cheap jet fuel may be temporarily over. Italian airports are feeling it first.
Sources: FTN News, Euronews, Il Corriere della Sera, VisaHQ Travel News
