United Airlines and US Airways, which last year won federal approval to begin highly coveted routes to China, are to postpone the launch of the new services by one year because of high fuel costs.
Since the permission was granted, oil prices have shot up by more than 60 percent. Benchmark prices surged past US$135 a barrel on Thursday before settling at $130.81.
The routes affected are United's service between San Francisco and Guangzhou and US Airways flights between Philadelphia and Beijing.
United's request for a delay has been approved but the request from US Airways hasn't yet been received, a Transportation Department spokesman said.
United was scheduled to start its new flights in early June while US Airways had planned to start its new route in 2009.
When United received approval to fly to China in September, Delta Air Lines also won rights to launch its first flights to China with a daily flight between Shanghai and Atlanta. Delta's flights began on March 31.
US Airways has been sending letters to members of Congress and its employees saying it would seek to delay the launch of the new Philadelphia-Beijing route, noting that the cost for fuel would be more than $90 million a year - $40 million more than the original estimate of about $50 million.
US Airways received final approval for the route in December. At the same time, American Airlines, Continental Airlines and Northwest Airlines each won awards to add a new daily flight to their existing service beginning next year.
Representatives for American, Continental and Northwest said they aren't making any changes to their plans for new China passenger routes next year.
However, Northwest has applied for a waiver to suspend seven weekly round-trip cargo flights a week between Tokyo and Guangzhou, China.
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