Maputo, Mozambique, 8 July – Mozambican state airline, Linhas Aéreas de Moçambique (LAM) said Monday in Maputo it was raising its ticket prices and reducing the number of flights offered in response to the “exponential” rise in jet fuel (Jet A-1) prices.

In a statement, the company said that in the first quarter Jet A-1 prices rose from 35 to 50 percent of its total costs, which meant that there had been a rise of US$950,000 per month in its fuel bill.

The price of Jet A-1 rose 43 percent between January 2007 and January 2008, but in just four months – between March and June this year – it rose 39 percent.

LAM thus made the decision to raise its ticket prices by 20 percent on domestic flights and add US$5 to the fuel surcharge for regional flights as well as to reduce the number of flights, particularly on routes with a low load factor.

As well as this the company announced it also planned to modernise its flights, replacing its Boeing 737-200s for other, more fuel efficient, aircraft.

LAM’s main business is domestic and regional coverage with flights to Johannesburg, Durban, Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam. (macauhub)