Will the economic crisis in Greece affect fuel for airlines, taxis, ferries and coaches?
While life is very tough for the Greeks, for travellers it's another good summer
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Your support makes all the difference.Q. Will flights landing in Greece have access to enough fuel to return? I understand they are unable to land with too much fuel for the return leg. I'm also concerned about fuel and getting to and from the airport by taxi and/or coaches. Will sufficient fuel be available to get to the resorts? Neil Hyde, London
A. All kinds of rumours are doing the rounds about the political and economic upheavals in Greece. Fuel is often the concern: that the airports, ferry ports and petrol stations will run dry because suppliers are not confident they will be paid.
I don't, however, share the anxiety. In the unlikely event that an airport runs out of jet fuel, the solution is straightforward. For shorter flights, e.g, to Corfu or Zante, airlines would simply fill their tanks with enough for the return journey. They don't like doing this – simply because it costs them more because of the increased weight.
Longer flights, such as from Glasgow to Crete, are more of an issue – but airlines are used to dealing with sporadic shortages of fuel and would simply add another stop on the return to top up. Inconvenient, but not a huge problem.
Ferries are essential to the functioning of the nation, and would be one of the services – along with health – that the government will keep going at all costs. Petrol and diesel are also unlikely to prove problematic, because the multinationals that run the fuel network believe that they will still be able to operate profitably.
While life is very tough for the Greeks, for travellers it's another good summer – with the bonus of lower package holiday prices.
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