Aviation fuel prices spike across the board in March

Overall Price MovementMarch delivered exactly what many feared: a sharp upward correction across fuel markets, resulting in price spikes as high as an additional $2/gallon at select locations. From an operational perspective, FBO price activity remained unusually quiet leading up to the second Tuesday of the month, followed by a surge in FBO reporting and widespread price increases. Many FBOs attempted to delay fuel purchases in hopes of better rates, but this tactic was short-lived (particularly as conditions in the Middle East failed to improve). At the time of writing, wholesale oil has yet to peak.For 100LL, the national average increased by $0.14 month-over-month for a total of $6.56. With that in mind, the national average was still $0.02 lower than March 2025. The beginning of 2026 granted us the lowest average price 100LL has seen since early 2022, which may contribute to March's increase feeling more drastic than it really is.Jet A, however, tells a slightly different story. The national average climbed by $0.55 in March, resulting in an average price of $6.89. This is the largest monthly increase Jet A has seen since April 2022 (when prices jumped by $0.73). In 2022, Jet A peaked in July at an average of $7.25. After two years of relatively stable monthly movement, this represents a notable and jarring challenge for many business aviation, commercial travel, air medical and emergency response operations.SAF couldn't escape the trend, either. It saw the steepest increase of all, rising $0.65 since February for a total of $9.36.100LL and Jet A have once again increased across every FAA region since February. SAF as well, for the most part. GlobalAir.com's aviation fuel data is showing one price decrease in March… for SAF's average price in the Southern FAA region.Each FAA region displays a notable upward spike over the past month. On the bright side, we are still seeing lower average retail prices than during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. We'll see if we can say the same next month.Find local fuel prices with the GlobalAir.com Fuel MapTop Performing AirportsAs a platform that largely caters to business aviation, the top airports searched on GlobalAir.com typically reflect corporate and private aviation hubs. We also see spikes at major commercial locations during times of travel uncertainty.GlobalAir.com's top three most visited airport pages in the past 30 days were:Laguardia Airport (KLGA) in New York, NYJohn F. Kennedy International Airport (KJFK) in New York, NYLos Angeles International Airport (KLAX) in Los Angeles, CATop Performing FBOsA particular company dominated March's leaderboard, though it came very close between our top-viewed FBOs.GlobalAir.com's top three most visited FBO pages in the past 30 days were:Jet Aviation @ KPBIJet Aviation @ BEDCape Aviation @ CGICongratulations to our top-viewed airports and FBOs, and safe fueling everyone!GlobalAir.com's Airport Resource Center and fuel data analyses are based on the prices of over 3,200 Fixed Base Operators (FBOs), reported directly by the FBO to GlobalAir.com. We do not accept fuel price updates from third parties. We hide/exclude FBOs that do not provide a price update or verification at least every 30 days to maintain pilot trust and database accuracy.As a result, GlobalAir.com offers accurate and up-to-date aviation fuel information. You can review live average fuel prices by FAA region by clicking here. Join us next month for another fuel data analysis and to find out which airports and FBOs have the highest performance on GlobalAir.com's Airport Resource Center. Learn more about GlobalAir.com's aviation fuel data by contacting Abigail Sheets at [email protected].