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UAL Corp.’s United Airlines and Delta Air Lines Inc. doubled their fuel surcharges on most round-trip tickets to $20 to help offset rising costs.
United, the world’s second-largest carrier, increased the fee late Thursday on most U.S. routes excluding Hawaii, while Atlanta-based Delta, No. 3 in the U.S. by traffic, boosted the charge Friday, spokeswomen said.
United, based in Chicago, is responding to “the high cost of fuel, which is our largest expense,” spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said in an e-mail. The price of jet fuel has climbed 52 percent this year. The cost surge is outpacing increases in fares, Delta’s Betsy Talton said.
