Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is driving up air cargo costs

The cost of transporting goods by air has surged since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last week, just as consumers are already grappling with the fastest pace of inflation in nearly 40 years. Carriers, including KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and United Parcel Service, are filling their planes with pricier fuel for longer Asia routes to avoid Russia due to airspace closures. Jet fuel prices in the United States this week hit the highest in more than a decade. The US on Tuesday joined Canada and much of Europe in barring Russian aircraft from its airspace. In January, more than 2,500 flights that departed the US used Russian airspace, while 493 flights from Russia used US airspace, according to aviation data firm Cirium. “With the uncertainty of Russian airspace restrictions to civilian aircraft, UPS decided on Mar. 1 to avoid use of Russian airspace for our Northern Pacific (NOPAC) operations until further notice,” UPS’ pilots union told aviators Wednesday. Higher transportation costs are likely to get passed along to consumers as it gets pricier to ship everything from manufacturing components to perishables like imported cheese and fruit. Commodity prices from wheat to aluminum are already spiking. The US ban of Russian aircraft included cargo giant Volga-Dnepr, which flies large aircraft pieces like wing parts for some Boeing jets. “We work closely with our wide range of supply chain and logistics partners to manage through any potential impacts,” the aircraft manufacturer said.<br/>