"Just to cover the increase in fuel costs over the past two years, American would have had to raise fares nearly $75 per round-trip ticket. During this time period, our average fare increased by only $15"
About this Quote
The $75-versus-$15 comparison is crafted to feel like a discount you didn’t notice you received. It’s not just an explanation of pricing; it’s a claim of restraint. He’s implying American Airlines absorbed pain on your behalf, eating costs that “should” have been passed along. That word “would” does heavy lifting: it imagines a counterfactual world in which the airline behaves like a pure cost-plus machine, then congratulates itself for not going fully there.
Context matters: mid-2000s airlines were getting hammered by fuel volatility, legacy labor contracts, and post-9/11 demand shifts. Executives needed a narrative that could travel across audiences - customers angry about fees, investors demanding margin, policymakers sniffing around consumer protection. Arpey’s quote is calibrated for all three. To passengers, it signals, “Stop accusing us of gouging.” To Wall Street, it whispers, “We have pricing power constraints; don’t expect miracles without structural change.”
Subtext: if fares haven’t risen enough to match fuel, something else must give - service cuts, ancillary fees, wage pressure, consolidation. The quote is a preemptive defense of decisions that make flying feel worse, presented as economic inevitability rather than corporate choice.
Quote Details
| Topic | Business |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Arpey, Gerard. (2026, January 15). Just to cover the increase in fuel costs over the past two years, American would have had to raise fares nearly $75 per round-trip ticket. During this time period, our average fare increased by only $15. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/just-to-cover-the-increase-in-fuel-costs-over-the-154462/
Chicago Style
Arpey, Gerard. "Just to cover the increase in fuel costs over the past two years, American would have had to raise fares nearly $75 per round-trip ticket. During this time period, our average fare increased by only $15." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/just-to-cover-the-increase-in-fuel-costs-over-the-154462/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Just to cover the increase in fuel costs over the past two years, American would have had to raise fares nearly $75 per round-trip ticket. During this time period, our average fare increased by only $15." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/just-to-cover-the-increase-in-fuel-costs-over-the-154462/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
