Spirit's collapse, high fuel prices test limits of summer vacation spending

Key points

• In this article UAL AAL Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Travelers walk through the terminal at Ronald Reagan Washington Airport on May 1, 2026. Leslie Josephs | CNBC Higher fuel prices are testing how badly consumers want to travel this summer, whether flying or driving.
• Airfare hasn't been this high since May 2022, when airlines stumbled out of the pandemic with aircraft and employee shortages to face hordes of consumers ready for "revenge travel." Gasoline is above $4 a gallon and could get closer to $5 a gallon this summer, AAA warned this week.
• Jet fuel prices doubled in the span of less than three months this year after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, kicking off a conflict that has left a key shipping channel effectively closed.
• Domestic round-trip airfares in April averaged $623, the highest in nearly four years, according to data from the Airlines Reporting...