Jet A and 100LL Fuel Prices Reach New Highs in September 2026 as Pueblo Airport Hangar Lease Dispute Develops
Why It MattersSustained fuel cost increases through 2026 squeeze operators and pilots, while lease disputes at municipal airports show how hangar tenants' individual contractual rights can become contested when larger arrangements end.
What happened
National Jet A Full Service fuel averaged $8.36 per gallon in September, up 39 cents, or 4.9%, from August. In the Lower 48, the average reached $8.31, a 5.1% monthly increase. Both Jet A and 100LL reached new highs during the month.
Separately, the Pueblo Airport User Group is raising questions about a developing dispute over hangar leases at Pueblo Memorial Airport. The questions concern what happens to individual contractual interests when a larger government-related lease arrangement ends, and how those interests should be addressed when replacement agreements are proposed.
The items were part of the Airborne Unlimited daily news episode of Friday, October 9, 2026. A manufacturer representative also said that an aircraft equipped with the Viking engine may be the only one the company builds with that engine, because all of its orders so far are for MWfly engines. The episode also listed stories on an Elixir accident, Solairus taking on Clay Lacy, Crew-13 reaching the ISS, and a Gulfstream simulator, along with coverage of the opening morning of the 2026 Albuquerque balloon event.
Industry impact & what to watch
Fuel is one of the largest variable costs for any operator, and a price series that sets new highs month after month leaves little room to absorb it. Charter and fractional operators generally pass fuel through to customers, while owner-operators and flight schools feel it directly in the cost of each hour flown. The September figures show the upward trend has persisted through 2026 rather than easing after a spike.
The Pueblo question is narrower but touches a structural feature of municipal airports: hangars often sit on leases layered beneath a larger government-related arrangement. When that upper-level lease ends, the tenants' own contractual interests do not automatically disappear, which is why user groups press for them to be addressed before replacement agreements are proposed.
What settles the Pueblo matter is how the replacement agreements are drafted and whether they treat existing hangar interests explicitly. On fuel, the next monthly average will show whether September's new highs hold.
