The sharp rise in fuel costs has left carriers scrambling to offset costs while maintaining operations.

Fuel is the second-largest expense for airlines after labor, typically accounting for about 27% of operating expenses.

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Japan Airlines was crowned king of the economy class seat (Getty/iStock) Looking for more legroom when you fly? The global airline with the best economy seats in the world has just been ...