After a period of reduced prices as the pandemic took air tickets to the lowest level in 20 years in 2020, airfares surged again. The average price of air tickets sold in the local market in 2021 was R$494.01, up 19.28% compared with 2020 and 2% compared with 2019, data by the National Agency of Civil Aviation (Anac) show. Airline executives, however, unanimously say that prices are bound to rise even more as oil skyrocketed driven by the Ukraine-Russia war.
This was the highest percentage increase seen in a year since 2008, when there was an increase of 37.82%, ANAC said. The 94% jump in the average price of jet fuel last year compared with 2020 levels was one of the main factors for the rise in airfare, in addition to the growth in demand.
In the case of Anac data, which compiles all tickets sold, the advance of the average ticket compared with 2019 underlines a change in the profile of tickets (with longer routes) than of price normalization – which is still below before the pandemic.
When analyzing last year’s data, the yield (that is, the amount paid by the passenger to fly one kilometer) was R$0.372, up 17.7% compared with 2020. However, the value is still 10% below that of 2019.
Although on average the tickets have not recovered, the consumer’s feeling that prices are higher is a reality and can be seen in the numbers. Last year, yields of up to R$0.300 represented 48.5% of the total. In 2020, this percentage was 58.9%. Yields of up to R$0.500 represented 70.6% in 2021, compared with 77.8% in 2020.
Meanwhile, tickets with a yield above R$1 (the most expensive ones) represented 10.1% of what was sold in 2021, compared with 7.4% a year earlier. In other words, the data show that fewer people could buy cheaper tickets (below a yield of R$0.3 and R$0.5) while more people bought more expensive tickets in 2021 than in 2020.
Gol was the company with the highest percentage of increase in tickets sold, 25.9%, followed by Azul Linhas Aéreas, with a 17% rise, and Latam, with an increase of 12.4%. However, Azul was the company that presented the highest average value of the air ticket, of R$562.66. Gol and Latam followed, with an average of R$481.76 and R$444.90, respectively.
In the international market, the air fare charged on flights to Europe had a reduction of less than 0.1%, with an average value of $643.11. Flights to Asia had an average fare of $960.07, a 3.3% drop.
Despite the weak real against the dollar, the expectation is that the variation of oil prices will impact aviation fuel only in the coming weeks. There is an estimate of a rise between 25% and 30%, according to airline executives.
Even without this effect, company yields are already quite high. At Gol, for example, the indicator is currently about 30% above pre-pandemic levels.
Even without this effect yet at the pump, the yields of the companies are already quite high. At Gol, for example, the indicator is currently about 30% above pre-pandemic levels. The airline industry has achieved a victory with the exemption of social taxes PIS and Cofins on jet fuel. This is an important step, but would have little practical effect on costs since the biggest villain on the tax side is sales tax ICMS, according to the Brazilian Association of Airlines (Abear).
Source: Valor International