Inadmissible, 29% increase in airfare on the Reunion/Paris line

We are living in a period of instability in the cost of energy, petroleum products in particular. We know that this situation will have consequences on our gas and electricity bills, but the risk is just as great with regard to the cost of transport and the price of plane tickets. The price of crude oil is set by the market according to variations and expectations of supply and demand for oil in the short, medium and long term. It is also a function of the quality of the crude in question and varies within a range of 5 to 10% around one of the three reference crudes which are listed on the international markets:

– Brent (crude from the North Sea), traded on the ICE (InterContinental Exchange) of the London Stock Exchange,
– WTI (West Texas Intermediate) type crude oil, traded on the Nymex of the New York Stock Exchange,
– Dubai in the Middle East, traded on the Dubai Stock Exchange. Fuel represents 25% of the airlines cost.

In recent months the price of oil has increased by 50% (down for a few weeks, prices are rising again today) which mechanically leads to an increase of 10 to 12% on the plane ticket. So why in Reunion we are at a 29% increase with certain air carriers? Admittedly, we record an increase every year for the July-August period! The other OM lines do not record such an increase. Civil Aviation says the average price increase is 6%! So why in Reunion are we so high? Looking in depth, it’s always the same companies that charge high prices for onboard services that tend to drop in quality!

Some executives of these retort that the pilots are very good in France and our French companies are reliable. This is perhaps also why our flight crew (flight technical personnel) are well paid. Let’s talk about our PNT and especially their remuneration. Certainly, they have a sacred responsibility at the controls of their aircraft and that their licenses, machine type ratings, class ratings and others … are expensive. That’s why the salaries are high… sometimes too high for some carriers who are in difficult situations and who ask for help! Just as an indication between two airlines serving Reunion Island for example, the salary differences are sometimes incomprehensible on equivalent machine types.

When a flight crew captain earns 14,000 euros per month and his colleague in the house opposite 9,000 euros… the co-pilot at 7,500 and his colleague still in the house opposite, at 4500 euros, one can legitimately ask why such a difference!! There is probably an alignment to operate. We can say to ourselves that there are probably reasons that escape us, that’s why I was interested to know if these flight crew members who evolve above 12,000 euros, worked more! It is at this point that we are no longer laughing because after a clever little calculation you find that the captain who comes in at 14,000 euros per month works less than his colleague at 9,000 euros, with a “monthly return and incredibly consistent hour/day output! It’s up to you to enjoy…

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