Travelers could soon face higher airfare as the industry takes a hit from conflict in the Middle East.

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said Thursday the impact on airfares will “probably start quick” as the price of jet fuel, which typically accounts for 20% to 25% of airlines’ operating expenses, has spiked since the U.S. and Israel began striking Iran. If prices remain elevated all year, it could cost American, Delta, Southwest and United a combined $5.8 billion in added fuel costs, Reuters analysis found.

Road trippers are feeling the impacts, too, as the average price for a gallon of gas reached $3.48, according to AAA.

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The death toll among American troops in the Iran war rose to seven, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Sunday acknowledged that more U.S. lives will likely be lost in the military operation. Iran announced the appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, as his successor on Sunday, though President Donald Trump had previously deemed him “unacceptable.”

MORE: Global crude oil prices soared above $100, hitting their highest level since 2022 on early Monday before paring back some of the gains. There is now a 80% chance of the national average gasoline prices in the U.S. reaching $4 per gallon by next month, “or sooner,” GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan warned, and the G7 group of countries are reportedly considering a joint release of their oil reserves.

Hopes for an improving job market were dashed last week, as the U.S. shed far more jobs than expected and the unemployment rate ticked up, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. It remains to be seen how the Federal Reserve will react to the report when it meets to determine interest rates later this month, though the latest jobs data “may have put the Fed between a rock........

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