Lufthansa Increases Fuel Surcharges for Third Time in 2026

Lufthansa has implemented its third fuel surcharge increase of 2026, affecting both award and revenue tickets across all routes. This latest adjustment sees surcharges rise by 10-25% in this round alone. When accounting for all increases throughout 2026, some routes, such as First Class to the U.S., have seen fuel surcharges increase by up to 71%.

The airline's CEO, Carsten Spohr, previously indicated that fuel price increases and global conflicts were putting pressure on the company. Original projections for additional fuel expenses of €1.5 billion in 2026 are now expected to be exceeded, as reported by Handelsblatt. Despite these cost pressures, Lufthansa anticipates an operating profit for 2026 comparable to the previous year, attributing this to cost-cutting measures within the core Lufthansa brand and recent ticket price increases.

Fuel costs for the full year 2026 were projected in August to reach €8.7 billion. This latest surcharge increase is presented as a response to these rising costs.

Impact on Travellers

The increase in fuel surcharges affects all passengers, including those redeeming Miles&More miles. Lufthansa already applies some of the highest fuel surcharges globally, particularly on North American routes. Using miles for certain redemptions can still incur charges around €1,000 each way, in addition to the points. For mileage collectors, this situation may prompt consideration of alternative loyalty programmes that impose fewer or no fuel surcharges, such as Avianca LifeMiles or United Airlines MileagePlus.

The latest increase is not limited to North America, however. Asian routes are now significantly affected as well, with particularly steep increases in premium cabins.

Source: Reisetopia

Opinion

Rising fuel costs are a genuine concern for airlines. A 71% increase in a single year for some premium redemptions is punitive. This makes redeeming miles on Lufthansa an increasingly poor value proposition.

A Business Class redemption requiring €1,700 in additional cash payments may offer poor value compared with a discounted paid ticket, in some cases costing more (!) in addition to the miles than a normal revenue ticket. That is ridiculous.