High fluctuation in EU air transport prices

The average price of air transport services, including plane tickets, in the EU has fluctuated significantly since January 2025. This volatility reflects travel demand, seasonality and recent geopolitical events. 

Between January 2025 and June 2026, the highest increase in air transport services prices was registered in April 2025, +13.7%, compared with April 2024. This increase in the annual rate of change was followed by fluctuations with modest increases in the summer months. 2026 started with a year-on-year decrease followed by rises in February and March and a sharp drop (-4.7%) in April. In May, air transport services prices rose by 8.1% compared with May 2025, with June following the same trend and registering a 3.1% increase. 

Overall prices for air transport were mostly impacted by variations in international air transport. Annual price changes for international travel fell more sharply than for domestic flights in weak months but they also recorded strong surges, including 14.1% in April 2025 and 8.7% in May 2026. 

In June 2026, international air travel prices increased by 4.5% and domestic air travel by 2.0%. 

Source dataset: prc_hicp_minr

High variations among EU countries

Between April and June 2026, annual rates of change for air transport services varied widely among EU countries. 

In Belgium, prices increased for all the three months, though at a slowing pace: by 41.5% in April 2026, 33.8% in May, and 28.7% in June compared with the same months in 2025. On the other hand, in Slovakia, prices of air transport services declined, most notably in April 2026 (-53.0%), May (-48.2%), and June (-45.1%) as well.

In most EU countries, however, prices for air transport services dropped in April 2026, followed by increases in May 2026. In June 2026, Austria (+22.3%) and Greece (+15.1%) also registered annual rates of change above 15%. In contrast, Hungary (-13.6%) and Poland (-13.1%) were among the biggest decreases. 

Source dataset: prc_hicp_minr